


Verses

by deathwailart



Category: Original Work
Genre: Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-03-12
Updated: 2014-06-08
Packaged: 2017-12-05 02:57:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 39,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/718075
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deathwailart/pseuds/deathwailart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Collection of all the original universes I've created and write.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Dragon Knights

**.stjarnacado**  
The world itself is comprised of one large continent but from some of the wildlife and races spread out, it is clear that it was not always so and at one point, the lands had been further apart; this is credited to the dragons in lore but no one is sure. The continent is home to the humans who once enjoyed a huge range, the most populous race, the elves who were in small pockets but who grew in number to band together with the dwarves to hunt down the humans and the dwarves who seldom appear on the surface.   
  
**Stjarnacado** is home to humans, elves, dwarves and nymphs, once the home of dragons too. In the early times, the first race to gain a foothold were the humans who spread far and wide, adapting to the different lands and climates, settling in tribes and living in fear of the great dragons who flew, swam and roamed the lands and so they prayed to them, left out offerings and eventually made contact. They asked to be taught the dragons crafts and magic to make life better for all and so they were taught and this eventually earned them the envy of other races. Other races such as ogres, giants, trolls and fairies once lived there, arriving from their island homes but during the purges, the few settlers were wiped out or had to escape back to where they came from or into hiding, many settling in the high mountains, coming down to attack. When the orcs are unleashed upon the land by the dwarves, they spread sickness, poisoning crops and land and water and those who live near such areas come down with sicknesses only magic can heal but only nymphs are able to heal the land and water.  
  
 **Jormsen** is a human settlement in the north of Stjarnacado, near the elven kingdom of Tishlen, home to Tanis. Jormsen is built into the mountain itself and is the oldest of all human settlements, still with castles and great halls carved into the very mountain itself which is where they store artifacts and tomes and train Dragon Knights. The settlement is often plagued by wild beasts and the other violent races who populate the mountain and must defend themselves constantly against attack. The population is mostly women, children and a few men; most men are nomads who must travel with goods and supplies and to have children in other places whereas women are asked to remain as mothers. The Dragon Knights are trained by a council of elders who preserve the traditions and history of the humans as best they can although even they have lost a great deal as the elves and dwarves burned and destroyed and stole to weaken the humans. Dwellings are simple - children are raised in a great hall with a creche of mothers around them and often they live in communal lodgings as they age unless they undertake training in which they'll live with their teacher and fellow apprentice(s).  
  
 **Borea** is one of the largest forests that a clan of wood nymphs call home - this is the forest Oran calls home, the great forest before one of the main openings to the dwarven empire. The forest is huge and vast, the majority of the trees made from the time of the purges when the nymphs sacrificed themselves by returning to nature in such a way. It has a waterfall and lake running through it that carries down from one of the mountains that cut the north off from the sea for hundreds of miles and it can take more than a month to travel through Borea from one side to the other. Borea is populated by many wild beasts but they are less prone to attack travellers as there are so many places to hide in the forest.   
  
**Tishlen** is the northern elven kingdom, a great walled expanse with vantage points and surrounded by mountains where humans tend to live, the Borea forest bordering it on one side with an entrance to the dwarven empire on the other side of the forest. Tishlen has many grand buildings with high spires and the elves live comfortably with a slave district for human slaves to be bought and sold and housed there if they are not attached to any household or business. The streets are paved, many buildings are painted and decorated and there is a grand square for town criers and for any great public event which also functions as a slave market too. The royal family, the Aenvi, rule and Ilea is the youngest daughter of the family with three elder brothers who live - this is the smallest royal family in generation due to the fertility problems the elves as a whole are facing.  
  
 **The dwarven empire** extends under the entirity of Stjarnacado - a dark desolate place, carved out by the lakes and rivers that run beneath the surface and by tracts of lava along with the activities of the dwarves. It has grand caverns that are directly beneath the cities which function as towns and areas to grow the tubers and mushrooms the dwarves live on. This is where the forges are and where the dwarves carry out the smithing work that they sell to the surface in exchange for the other items they need (mostly food and medicinal supplies). Now the dwarves are digging deeper, in search of mythical tomes; one is found in a northern point of the empire, extending beneath the mountains near Jormsen. The tomes were stolen but the dragons had already sealed them shut as they were forbidden to be used due to them being of the darkest rituals, rituals that could be accessible to anyone if a dragon happened to be near. The dwarves hatch a dragon egg but due to them not possessing magic, they hatch a creature called a wraith, made of shadow which opens the tome allowing them to go on to create orcs through use of toxins and torture and the blood of the wraith - as it was dragon blood needed, it should not have turned them into orcs; it should have created a Dragon Knight the way the humans of old had done. The dwarves flee into different tunnels and unleash the orcs and wraiths into the world and still do not come to the surface, save trading.  
  
 **The South** _Moja_ is perhaps one of the most relaxed areas of Stjarnacado where the elves are not as harsh in their judgements, full of lush forests much less imposing than the north. There is still slavery practiced but it is not seen as socially acceptable by all the elves although for the sake of saving face the majority of elves say nothing against it. The royals and those in power practice it so for the most part people shut their mouths and try to treat slaves with some decency. Attitude towards slavery can be tracked by age. The eldest elves who remembered the days before slavery are somewhat ashamed of it but they have lost their sway to their children and the few youngest elves think it's barbaric and have rebel groups but they are ostracised, facing death and the disgrace of their family. They have formed an alliance with the nymphs of these lands - the humans trust them little and keep to themselves - and the rebels hide out there in the forests and do what they can. Tishlen looks down on the south and wants to conquer them but none of the kingdoms have the strength or true inclination to fight one another at this stage.  
  
 **The East** _Vaile_ is known for sailing with the least dwarven presence for when they dug in the wrong places the tunnels flooded to the point that they blocked them off and shunned it. There are relatively few humans here now for many of them left to look for the dragons and chart the expanses, never returning. Some say they were rescued and taken to the dragons but none know for sure what happened to them, only that they're gone. Eastern elves have the greatest degree of freedom in Stjarnacado - there's a huge river made of water nymphs that blocks them off and the nymphs and elves ignore one another. Eastern elves are artisans for the most part with a fascination for nature. They are the least affected by the extremely decreased fertility of the elven race as a whole but must hide their children as a result lest the other elves come after the children or them to try to boost their own fertility. They too have learned shipbuilding and like to sail and it is often that they will raise their children away from the land to keep them safe.  
  
 **The West** _Rella Regnai_ is often in a rivalry with Tishlen, trying to outdo one another but they have more dealings with the dwarves to gain power, shadowy alliances that will see them benefit from the experiments the dwarves are planning. There are deadly power games at work in the western kingdom where no one can trust anyone at all and the humans are not slaves but instead function more as serfs, working for the elves for a pittance - slavery comes if you cannot pay your way, the method the west uses to show how much more 'civilised' they are than Tishlen. There are whispers too of half-elven children smuggled away so that the elves will gain magic somehow to be able to take the world at the opportune moment.  
  


_main races_  
 **Humans** \- the humans were once the main race in Stjarnacado, a vast loosely defined kingdom spreading out with tribes who traded with one another and who lived more or less peacefully with the other races as they began to appear. The humans had always possessed magic that they used to go about their lives but once they began to speak with the dragons, they asked if they could be taught more and the dragons accepted, teaching them all sorts of magic and skills, turning them into a great people. The humans continued to worship the dragons, many books and art and buildings featuring them in some way and other races such as the elves and dwarves began to feel jealous and resentful of what they had. The humans were hunted down and slaughtered, taken as slaves and pushed to the very brink and now they struggle to survive, living in tiny villages where they try to rebuild their numbers by having as many children as possible. Villages are usually made up of mostly women, there is very little emphasis on marriage and monogamy and children are all raised communally by the village elders. There are nomadic bands, primarily men, who travel from village to village to spread their genes around and to trade vital supplies. Humans are the only race who can become Dragon Knights.  
  
 **Elves** \- the elves are now the main ruling race, tall, slender and very long lived. They possess no magic whatsoever and are in fact extremely vulnerable to it so along with the dwarves (also vulnerable to magic) they began the purges against humans, nymphs and indeed any of the other races that had begun to colonise the mainland, driving them all back to the island chains dotting around the continent. They also claim to have killed all the dragons that the humans worshipped and learned from. Now the most powerful race with many kingdoms spread throughout the continent but they are now facing problems such as a drastically reduced fertility that they can't explain but it has made them extremely paranoid that something is wrong and that it is the work of magic or the dwarves as they relations between the dwarves and elves have broken down completely since the ending of the purges and they know that the dwarves have an empire sprawling beneath every city. The elves taken human slaves for many reasons but forbid use of magic unless it makes life easier such as healing but their human slaves are poorly treated and shackled. They still perform raids on human settlements or the nomads, killing or taking slaves to keep them in line. There are also tensions between elven kingdoms due to these strains and there is a very real threat of civil war.  
  
 **Nymphs** \- the nymphs are comprised of two main races: wood and water. During the dwarven-elven purges, many sacrificed themselves, turning into rivers or trees (creating new forests and lakes). Usually the nymphs go nude and are either green and brown (wood) or blue and turquoise (water). They possess entirely black eyes, very long pointed ears (that point outwards rather than upwards like elves). Water nymphs have gills to allow them to breathe underwater and a secondary eyelid so they can open their eyes underwater and wood nymphs are able to photosynthesise. Nymphs possess magic that is focussed on healing and whatever race they happen to be; wood nymphs can command trees and plants and vines to attack foes and water nymphs are able to summon and control any water although they find it harder to control sea water as they are associated with fresh water as the seas are the domain of the sirens/mermaids. They often possess very elaborate patterns along their bodies which they can alter to allow them to blend in with their surroundings. The nymphs worship nature and natural forces and often go through a ritual of purification to mark them entering adulthood where they set themselves on fire; those with pure faith and intentions survive and are embraced as adults and members of their clan.  
  
 **Dwarves** \- the dwarves control a vast empire beneath the whole of Stjarnacado. The dwarves are a short and squat people with more than a mild resemblance to naked mole rats: they have very small, weak eyes, are bald and have extremely pale skin. They lack an ability to feel pain in the skin to cope with where they live and their lungs are adapted to live deep beneath the earth and to cope with the toxic chemicals there. They have great tactile sensation though and there are those who possess better vision and so they are still able to produce beautiful weapons and other smithed items. Like elves, they are vulnerable to magic and they also hated that the humans had gained knowledge of smithing from dragons as they felt this was cheating due to the fact that they hadn't spent centuries honing their skills as the dwarves had. After the purges ended, the dwarves left the surface and now can scarcely tolerate it without serious consequences. They tunnel deep beneath the whole of Stjarnacado and are searching for dragon eggs to be able to control the surface world as well. Their experiments to hatch dragon eggs create wraiths as the dragons were hatched incorrectly. Using one of the wraiths, they managed to open an ancient tome that had been sealed in lava by the dragons and experimented on their own people to create orcs, unleashing horror upon the world.  
  
  
 _minor races_  
 **Ogres** \- huge, bestial and prone to violently attack anything that gets too close, ogres are feared by all and no races have ever been able to communicate with them although they do appear to have a method of communication within their own race.  
  
 **Giants** \- tall with broad chests and extremely long limbs, the giants look absolutely terrifying at a first glance as they tower over even the ogres but they're a very peaceful race of thinkers, even longer lived than the elves and they can remember the times of the dragons too. They're sympathetic to the plights of humans and have been known to aid them in conflict although the elves have ways of fighting them meaning they are equally as vulnerable.  
  
 **Sirens** \- the sirens are an aquatic race, possibly related to water nymphs who must live in the water although they can come to the surface for brief periods. They are skilled at shapeshifting between their natural form - a horrific sea creature with lures, sharp teeth and odd eyes to maximise their ability to see in deeper water when hunting their prey - and a more aesthetically pleasing form to lure sailors or those along the shore to their doom, imitating nymphs most commonly. The sirens can cause horrific storms and appear to do all of this simply for fun; they lie and are not to be trusted.  
  
 **Trolls** \- trolls are short and squat, with long curving horns and prefer to live in darker, moister areas like bogs and swamps and have an obsession with shiny things. They can be very shy unless provoked but like to be left alone although they do feel a certain kinship with the nymphs due to being so close to nature and often inhabiting the same areas.   
  
**Fairies** \- the fairies are the hardest to define race - they have no fixed form, no fixed methods and no single locale although most families, even elves, leave out tiny things of food just in case. The fairies specialise in mischief and are not bound by any sorts of laws or rules; some say they are tiny, some say they're as big as giants and others say they are forces of nature who take a form as they see fit.  
  
 **Orcs*** \- the orcs are squat and short, like the dwarves they were made from but they are extremely powerful. They possess wraith blood and the vision of dragons and dark magic that they use to kill and poison. They can think but their thoughts are bent upon violence and destruction. They can be killed like any other creature but do not feel pain and have remarkable stamina and strength.  
  
 **Wraiths*** \- the wraiths are dragons gone horribly wrong; wakened by dwarves by hatching stolen dragon eggs through only fire. Even humans had not hatched dragons and instead kept eggs they came across safe for the return of the dragons. Wraiths are made of only shadow and darkness with a strange 'breath', a deep purple toxin that burns, opening a sealed tome which contained knowledge of how to make orcs. They have dark magic and inflict great suffering upon the world. Only dragon knights can fully slay them.  
  
*both these 'races' were created by dwarven experiments; not all of the world knows of them or believes that they are real  
  
Along with all this there are wild monsters and such that populate the world, non-sentient creatures hunted for their flesh/skins/medicinal properties etc etc

The humans worshipped the dragons for many years, watching them as they flew and leaving offerings, praying to them as if they were gods and in a sense, the dragons were due to them being immortal and ancient and having created the world with their magic. The dragons eventually spoke with the humans via Solace, the highest ranking of the dragons and the one who could change her shape, changing into the form of a human so as not to frighten them, opening up real discussion between the two races. The humans asked to be taught by the dragons and promised to praise them and not use their gifts for ill but instead to benefit Stjarnacado as a whole. Dragons came in a whole array of shapes and sizes and as the centuries passed, they gave up one of their hearts to seal the bond between humans and dragons.  
  
The elves and dwarves grew jealous and began to attack, slowly weakening the dragons by way of poisons the dwarves created deep beneath the earth and that the elves coated their weapons with. Weakened, they disappeared after Solace met with the elven and dwarven rulers and other dragons who said they would cease their attacks on the humans if the dragons left and so they did but not before vowing revenge for what had been done to them, the humans and Stjarnacado - the dragons created a curse to slowly draw the life from elves and dwarves until one day they could be strong again and return.  
  
 **Known dragons:**  
Solace, the priestess. Solace took human form to first speak to the humans as they were terrified of the dragons they prayed to - she is invoked often as a deity name ie for the love of Solace and other such things.  
Ferrum* - the dragon of the smith  
Confgra* - the dragon of fire  
  
Many names have been lost to time and history and are instead just referred to by what they do ie healing, storms, sea etc.  
  
The lowered fertility of the elves is due to the dragons - in order to make themselves strong again after the purges, they have been sucking life from the elves slowly and surely, to weaken their race as retribution for the damage they have caused Stjarnacado. The dwarves and their inability to dwell on the surface for long is also part of this curse.  
  
*These are the only dragon names Tanis knows.  
  
 ** _Dragon Knights_**  
Dragon Knights possess the heart of a dragon as dragons have two hearts. These hearts come from the lesser dragons who were the descendents of the dragons worshipped as gods and who gave up a heart willingly for the humans to signify the closeness between their races. Dragon Knights possess even stronger magic than a normal human or a nymph due to the fact that it is amplified, able to draw upon the strength of a dragon. Tanis for example has the heart of a fire dragon and as such possesses much stronger fire magic to the point that it has altered her demeanour; when she is angry, she and the air around her will become hot and her temper can be extremely explosive when she's angry.  
  
Dragon Knights were once the most revered of warriors but few are left now as many remained to defend their homes during the purges. As such, there are not enough hearts left and due to the fact that removing the human heart renders them infertile, only the very best are chosen to become Dragon Knights. The training to become a Dragon Knight is training from hell. Gruelling endurance and strength exercises, lessons on lore and healing, history and magic, lessons in how to hunt as well as survival training. The training involves being able to withstand torture too, magical and physical and most Dragon Knights do what they can to purge themselves of emotion because it's the only way they can withstand it. The last part of the training after their own heart is removed involves them eating their human heart to signify that they are no longer part of the human race.  
  
The Dragon Knights can 'die' in a sense but the dragon heart will still beat long enough for their heart to make it back to Jormsen to be passed on - there is a magic that winds between those with dragon hearts that allow them to be aware of one another and so this heart will call out for another to come for it. The hearts are passed on from Dragon Knight to Dragon Knight or kept alive by magic if there is no candidate ready to receive it.  
  
Once Dragon Knights lived longer lives that were expected for humans but now, as the sole defenders of the human villages and leading dangerous lives trying to keep the people safe means that they are lucky to see fifty, dying young and alone. Dragon Knights are bound to serve the elves if the elves have need of them. To refuse is to court death and the destruction of the dragon heart and to risk the lives of other humans as the elves will stop at nothing to keep the humans in line.   
  
Not all see being a Dragon Knight as an honour. Those of old bloodlines or the ones raised in the north who cling to the old ways the most and they know the most about the rituals and the fact that they receive dragon hearts to become what they are. The training is brutal and some, the very best of the young men and women of other settlements are 'strongly encouraged' to go to Jormsen to complete the training. They know nothing of the changes that will be forced upon them and once it has been done (if they survive) they are forever changed. Other humans dislike the Dragon Knights because they're expected to honour them for no reason at all other than the title they have, to feed and house them and many believe that they bring danger for their presence makes the elves angry and nervous.  
  


Human culture still revolves around worship of the dragons and struggling to rebuild their race after the purge. They are very secretive about their magic as they know that the elves will punish a whole village if they feel they're getting too powerful and put a great deal of focus into healing just to keep people alive because every life is precious. As it stands, there is a sense of duty to have as many children as possible. As Dragon Knights are rendered infertile by the process, they _must_ have a child before they complete their training as the training culminates in the removal of the human heart to be replaced by a dragon heart (with the human heart being eaten as the ending, to show what they have lost). Whilst courtship is no longer a large part of human life in some places, it is practiced amongst nomads and regions other than Jormsen; courtship tends to involve the crafting of a piece of jewellery - or helping to design such a thing if one doesn't possess the crafting skills - for the other person.  
  
Elven culture has no religion; they see it as beneath them and outdated and mock the humans for it. They are incredible warriors and scholars and excel at creating beautiful things when it comes to building and their cities are a sight to behold, many buildings and objects that aren't weapons intricately decorated and detailed. They have made a point to bring art and literature into a golden age. They despise magic unless it is of use for them and there are whispers that some elves are looking for a way to enslave humans to the point that they can be trained like a war hound so that they can make the humans use magic but without the fear of it being turned on the elves. Courtship is important to the elves is important - they take on a task another usually does as a sign of wanting to be closer. Helping to comb hair is also important too. There is a great taboo about relations with a human in some regions - in Tishlen a human whore is allowed but minimal touching beyond the necessary is frowned upon and seen as a perversion. Due to the extreme decline in elven births, same-sex relationships are frowned upon now unless the elf is married and actively trying for children with their partner.  
  
Nymph culture worships nature and there are points to mark stages in their lives. No nymph is considered an adult until they undergo the Purification which involves walking into a great fire often as part of a group of those who are around the same age. If they have a deep enough connection to the world around them then they can draw from that and heal themselves throughout the ritual but they must be in the correct state of mind and have complete and utter faith so that they don't panic. Nymphs do not reproduce as other races and possess no secondary sexual characteristics such that others can tell although they do think of themselves as male or female depending on if they have male or female flowers. However, nymphs do like to spend time together, kissing, embracing, holding hands and checking for parasites such as wood worms. They touch flowers to pollinate and craft natural tokens for one another. After the Purification their bodies change to become 'fruitful' - they can choose to set seed from certain flowers and bless them with their own magic before asking for the blessing of the Old Mother. The Old Mother is said to be the eldest of all wood nymphs who gave life to them all when she brought the world to life around her and she resides in Borea. Other forests have their own Old Mothers but the one in Borea is the oldest and she is considered to be all that wood nymphs could ever aspire to be. Nymphs _can_ reproduce alone but prefer to reproduce with another to share the miracle of life.   
  
Dwarven culture is a mystery to most; they seem to have no faith, speak little of any matters outside of trade and are hostile to outsiders. The dwarves are resentful of how the humans gained their smithing knowledge and wish to control more of the world even if they find life on the surface intolerable: the orcs and wraiths darken the world entirely where they touch it meaning that if they could be controlled then it could be habitable to the dwarves alone.  
  
 **.customs**  
 _tattoos_  
Tattoos are common and used to tell things about the past and the life one has lived when done freely - even the elves and dwarves have tattoos, a common habit between three of the main races. The elves also place tattoos upon slaves to identify them and to shame them, black bands around necks, wrists and ankles to signify that they're slaves with things like flowers marking out whores.  
  
 _war paint_ \- **human**  
The wearing of war paint was once a widespread tradition but now it has fallen out of favour and fashion. All humans did it to convey meaning, moods, connections to one another, during the purge it became a symbol of the resistance and now, like so many things, it is but a relic. Nomads still use it for a variety of reasons. To paint the face of another is considered to be an incredibly intimate act.  
  
 _fated ones_ \- **human**  
In the most ancient of stories amongst the humans there were those who had, in their belief, been 'made' for another person by the dragons with the oldest story being that of Áki and Stígandr, two brave knights who defended their people and were lovers until they fell in the same battle with the same spear. Ballads are still sung of them in this day in some human settlements. The love is not always requited and due to the absence of the dragons and the vastly reduced human population it is not spoken of but there are two known of, Hákon and Brynjar, both dragon knights who fight alongside a band of nomads. If the love is not requited, the one in love will still pine for that person and defend them until death.   
  
_purification_ \- **nymph**  
Purification is a ritual a young nymph must undergo to become an adult where they give themselves up to the great fire. Not all nymphs survive this and it is said that those who do not survive do not die, rather they transcend and become the winds of Stjarnacado, no longer nymphs but something that can be felt in forests and that stirs the waters. Those who pass change in appearance and become full adults of nymph society with much stronger magic.  
  
 **.afterlife**  
 _human_ \- it is believed that when humans die they will go to the land the dragons came from where they will be in their prime. This afterlife was reserved for humans only but Ilea of Tishlen as well as those who were half-elven were allowed to venture there to be with their kin.  
  
 _elf_ \- no one knows where the elves go but it is not the same place as the humans. It is thought that perhaps they went there once but no more. When elves die it is a slow process where they do not age but slowly disappear until one day they are gone.  
  
 _nymph_ \- nymphs do not have an afterlife as such, instead they believe they become wood or water to nurture Stjarnacado. They believe that one day all Stjarnacado will be forests or waterways with no plains left unless the forests are felled and waters diverted.

The story begins when Tanis, a dragon warrior from a northern village closest to the northern elven kingdom is told she must aid the elven princess Ilea in discovering what the dwarves are doing as they have not been heard from in some time and there have been strange sensations that seem like earthquakes beneath the cities and outlying areas. Tanis goes along with Ilea to investigate as her guard and spends most of her time actively resenting the elf and doing her best not to be drawn into conversation of any sort. Along the way they pass through Borea, a wood nymph forest where they meet Oran who eventually goes with them to investigate saying that she has a right to do so; to the surprise of Tanis, Ilea is happy to let her come along. They travel to the entrance to the dwarf empire in the north and head down, investigating - at one point Ilea is almost gravely wounded but Tanis saves her life claiming it is her duty, shrugging off Ilea's profuse gratitude - until they find out that the dwarves are attempting to hatch dragon eggs. Tanis almost goes on a rampage, wanting to take the eggs back as the humans worshipped them but she is restrained as it could spark something even worse.   
  
During the journey Tanis and Ilea argue often and it comes to a head when they have sex after a fight that turns physical. Tanis is extremely conflicted about her feelings for the elf (Ilea too and neither of them are helped by Oran's probing questions) and though they get to know each through more arguments, they still won't admit to anything and most of their relationship is angry sex and hurt feelings with Oran being the one to keep the peace between them when things get sour.  
  
They return to the surface to report their findings to Ilea's family and court but their words aren't believed. The three leave again to speak to human and nymph elders but no one believes them either. At this point, Ilea is summoned to return home as she is meant to grow up and marry but she refuses and is disowned by her royal family and says that Tanis and Oran are all she has now.  
  
It's around this point that Tanis and Ilea actually talk about their feelings and when Oran asks to return to Borea to undergo the Purification, they act upon their feelings, Tanis admitting that she's come to care about people for the first time in her life even if it terrifies her because she finds it hard to be objective when she worries about Ilea and Oran. Ilea admits that to love a human is considered one of the most shameful things in elven society but that she doesn't care. They support Oran through the ritual which she passes, being marked an adult in their society, given talismans and supplies to help the trio on their journey. (She also informs Tanis and Ilea that they are technically married in nymph society because they'd had sex in the forest. Tanis and Ilea counted themselves lucky they are not nymphs.)  
  
At the same time as the Purification, the dwarves hatch a dragon only it's a wraith that they use to open an ancient tome of magic, forbidden and sealed away by the dragons. But the dwarves used it and created orcs by experimenting on their own people, orcs that overpowered them and escaped along with the wraiths and unleashed hell upon Stjarnacado, spreading pestilence and sickness in their wake. Not long after leaving Borea, Tanis, Ilea and Oran make camp and when she's patrolling she's attacked by a band of elves who wish to end their quest: she kills them, the first time she has ever slain anything other than an animal as well as killing her own kind, considered to be a grave crime should it be discovered. This strains the relationship between her and Tanis - Tanis tries to help her by talking about how she's killed her own kind too and that it isn't a big deal but they argue about humans and elves, nearly coming to blows. Not long after this they come across nomads lead by Hákon, Tanis' father, and Brynjar, his fated one. Tanis has a crisis upon meeting him, acting coldly towards Ilea only to be somewhat horrified at how close he is with elves; the nomads he leads aid the elven resistance of the South.   
  
Tanis has always had complicated feelings on the subject of her father due to his noble blood meaning she had to have children to become a Dragon Knight and that it was still almost banned due to the fact that she was a woman. Meanwhile Hákon is upset about the fact he was not allowed to take her away to live in the South; he reveals that the North is corrupt and wants to follow their version of the old ways and bans much news nomads would bring to the settlement instead of allowing them to move on. Tanis refuses to believe him and they argue often so he tries to talk to Ilea. Brynjar though is the one to make her see sense and she agrees to get to know her father - as Brynjar pointed out, every single one of them has known enough pain in their lives and that none of them know how much longer they'll have left with the evil that threatens their land.   
  
Tanis decides that they need to visit the islands dotted around the continent to search for the lost dragon lore and anything that might stop the orcs and wraiths but in the meantime, the dwarves blame the humans and war is unleashed upon the world. In other places, like the South the elven resistance movement begins fighting, allying with the nymphs to do what they can to repel the forces of evil that are combatting their land. The West then decides to go to war with the North causing the first elven civil war to begin and many elves of the East begin to flee to the islands some of the humans have now populated; the western elves are allied with the dwarves and there is massive damage to many places as the dwarves and their creations pour out from under the ground. In the South they abolish slavery entirely and fight alongside the humans, setting themselves apart as an entirely new nation. Everyone returns to Jormsen which is a shambles as the elders still reveal nothing, saying that the rumours of humans and elves in other lands are lies but finally the people of Jormsen rebel and turn from the elders saying that the old ways are at an end. The elves of Tishlen agree to a temporary alliance, promising that they will treat the humans as their equals in the conflict. Those who cannot fight flee to Borea to hide but many join the elves or follow Hákon, Brynjar, Tanis, Ilea and Oran in their nomad force that soon comes to resemble a small army. Oran rallies her people to do what they can in healing the hurts of the land to stop the damage from being permanent. The nymphs agree and the forests and rivers seem to come alive as they join any who will have them in healing. They use a great magic of old to make Borea an impenetrable fortress so that only those with pure hearts might enter and find refuge.  
  
With no answers in sight on the mainland with the war grinding on for years, the decision is made to move to the East to take ship but they are cut off by an unprecedented army of elves, dwarves, wraiths and orcs they have to fight. In this conflict Hákon is slain to the horror of Brynjar and Tanis but he says he can die happy if she ends this. Brynjar urges Tanis to go saying that he will lead their forces as best he can for as long as possible. She promises to find an end to the war as they take ship with the few remaining Eastern elves looking for aid. The journey seems hopeless, many islands populated with creatures, some humans and elves. There even Tanis is tempted to remain until the war on Stjarnacado burns itself out but she comes to her senses with the aid of Ilea and Oran and they keep searching. All seems lost until they come to a point where they find a strange smog that covers an entire island, an island of bones that looks as if it is made of shadow itself. Ilea and Oran beg Tanis not to cross it but her dragon heart moves her and she passes through to a different realm, hazy and indistinct but importantly, where the dragons retreated to so they would not be killed. The elves had lied about killing them but they had sufficiently weakened the dragons instead and so long as the dragons remained, they would attack the humans and kill them off until all were gone. The dragons left to save the humans and to await a time to gather strength and return.  
  
Tanis manages to convince the dragons to come back to the realm to help stop the war before the world is ripped apart for their magic is enough to turn the tide with the final battle taking place in Jormsen. She is knighted their by Ilea after Ilea's parents, the king and queen agree she is a hero and she is the first human to be knighted in centuries, helping to bring about better times for the humans at long last although there is still the promise of war and danger as many are still unhappy about this change in the elven kingdom and even the humans do not trust this sudden and new truce between the races. The dwarves too are silent and rumours still persist of strange things going on beneath the earth that trouble even the dragons cannot discern.   
  
**Further future:**  
Brynjar is next to be knighted and becomes the de facto ruler of Jormsen but passes the title on to his son, Torrin, once he feels it is time, finally giving in to his grief to join Hákon.  
  
It takes Ilea 400 years to get over Tanis when she dies. Even then she only marries because she’s lonely and names her children Tanis, Hakon, Brynjar and Oran.  
  
Tanis II goes on to found a kingdom of the half-elven with a human from the south.  
  
Tanis’ daughter, Gudrun, goes on to become a Dragon Knight of legend and helps to guard the first dragon hatchlings, Tanis’ son, Gunnar, travels with nomads and fathers the cutest babies ever. He’s nicknamed The Stag for obvious reasons.  
  
Solace takes Ilea away when she passes to the human afterlife so she can be reunited with Tanis - in later years they are said to be fated ones too, the first between their species.  
  
Oran becomes known as the Old Mother who helps to heal many of the hurts of the land.

**.words/slang**  
 _places_  
Jormsen - Serpentine [archaic] - named so in the proto-language of the humans [yormsen]  
Stjarnacado - starfall [Scandinavian/Icelandic and Latin mishmash] [st-yar-nah-cah-do]  
Vaile - winged - named so in the elven language as their ships have sails that look very much like wings [veye-lay]  
Moja - lush - named so in the elven language for the warm forests there [moha]  
Tishlen - from the elements 'tish' ice and 'len' jewel lit. ice jewel  
Borea - of the north [from Latin] [bo-ray-ah]   
Rella Regnai - 'rella' meaning great and 'regnai' power, named so in the elven language to rival Tishlen [reh-la reyg-nai]  
  
 _words_ \- human  
Drerannen - Greetings (drer - hello/hi) [dreh-rah-nen - dreh is the longest syllable, rah-nen are equal]  
Ferrum - iron from the great smith dragon  
Confgra - fire from the great fire dragon  
Nehlya - Goodbye (neh - bye) [neh-lie-a - lie is the longest syllable]  
Gerenthe - Apologies/sorry   [geh-ren-they - th as in thigh, they is the longest syllable]  
  
 _other_  
Arrow tip - insulting name for elves or elven things ie 'dressed like an arrow tip'  
Cave rat - insulting name for dwarves or dwarven things


	2. Soldier On

**world information:**   
_In the beginning, we were birthed from chaos, that is what the scrolls say. We came from the Void, from Oblivion, from the Old Ones who existed from a universe beyond our own; we were their experiments in shaping this world, the one good thing they created and they were horrified by us.  
  
We were goodness. We were small. We did not have what they wished for us. We were their slaves and their playthings until they retreated and left us behind in this new galaxy. And we rejoiced. We had a chance to be more than what they had intended.  
  
But we must always be aware. Their darkness dwells within us.  
_  
\- A Counsel On Our Creation, the Book of Knowledge  
  
The Óhreinn universe, the one the Old Ones* came to from a place known as the Void and Oblivion and shaped before abandoning when it did not suit their purpose as it weakened them. Instead they left their creations behind to build a civilisation - they possessed greater knowledge of how to travel through space and how to build and so quickly they populated their worlds and moons, each world becoming suited to specific tasks: agriculture, manufacture, fishing and so on and so forth. That race was known as the Forder (later known as the Førdt)  
  
 **info on races**  
 **Old Ones:** The Old Ones* are the monstrous creatures that seeded life in the galaxy when they came across it before abandoning it. They are worshipped in different degrees as deities but no one alive has had any contact with them. The Old Ones need humans especially as a power source to fuel their war efforts.  
  
 **Primordial Beings:** Even less is known of these than the Old Ones but they are the beings that created the Old Ones and then regretted it as their creations grew too powerful. They are gearing up for a war that will forever change the face of the galaxy.  
  
 **Seire:** First known as the Sek, the Seire fought a war far in the past with the Førdt, the first race to develop the ability to travel to other worlds, wanting to be the most powerful as the Førdt were able to exploit resources they couldn't until they took the technology and improved it themselves. They hunted the Førdt to extinction. The race can show extreme dimorphism between castes after centuries of breeding: warriors are bulky, scientists are extremely intelligent to the point that their brains are wired in a different manner but the differences between males and females are very subtle. They are a reptilian race (gender is determined based on their ridge patterns and the number of facial horns they have) and lay eggs rather than birthing live young. They have a lifespan in the hundreds. The Seire did not know that their opponents were emissaries of the Old Ones.  
 **  
Fordrer:** Little is know of the Fordrer save for whispers. They created the Eksilin for unknown reasons and they attack mercilessly - even the Eksilin have never seen their captors as they are made by other Eksilin or machines. The race sound similar enough in name to the Førdt that rumours fly that the Seire never destroyed all of the first race at all. [Fordrer are indeed the remnants of the Førdt who have come for revenge, a race of emissaries to the Old Ones who watch over the galaxy. They are a widely varying race with monstrous appearances that strike fear into the hearts of those who see them.]  
  
 **Humans:** Known as the Kvámmst by the other races, they were the last race to come to the galaxy on exploratory missions, bringing with them knowledge on terraforming - skills crucial as the Fordrer have begun attacking planets and colonies, leaving them unable to be lived on. They look like regular humans in the modern world but often undergo various modification and augmentation processes to make them more resilient, smarter, stronger etc which aids in their ability to adapt to life in other environments.  
  
 **Passrmes:** The Passrmes are exceptionally gifted at intricate work, light and nimble and seem to remind the humans of birds in their build and stance. They have feathers rather than hair and the race exhibits huge variances in the colour and plumage, the males being more elaborate, displaying sexual dimorphism. They have three forward facing toes on their feet with one backward facing one for grip and balance but have normal hands. They have a lifespan shorter than humans (maximum age is around 80).  
  
 **Bolig:** An amphibian race who wear specialised suits when outside of their planet to keep their skin moist; their world is difficult to live on for others as the entire environment is humid and moist, the air thick to breathe. The Bolig are a shy race and wish to hide from the Fordrer to the point that they are returning to their ancestral ways, shunning advanced technology as a means to protect themselves although they were the first race to welcome the humans when they made contact. They have a comparable lifespan to humans.  
  
 **Eksilin:** Not truly a race in their own right, the Eksilin are technopaths, modified members of many races, trusted by few as they can be programmed by the Fordrer to betray at a moment's notice. Technopaths have the ability to manipulate technology. Manifested as a special form of electrical/telekinetic manipulation, a special form of "morphing" which allows physical interaction with machines, or even a psychic ability that allows mental interface with computer data. Users can control the flow of intricate machinery and can allow them to assemble or disengage their programing at will. Can operate most technology just by touching or looking. No one knows if the modification has had an affect on their lifespan.  
 _Limits:_  
can’t control purely mechanical objects which possess no electronic or ferrous components, usually require close proximity to object being manipulated and left powerless away from modern society.  
 _Techniques:_  
 _Activation/Deactivation:_ Users can turn machines on or off at will. Can be used to induce blackouts, technopathic perception: Users can read electronic signals, sort of like mind reading for machines. Can be used to "talk" to computers  
 _Technological manipulation:_ Users can control a machine's basic functions from a distance, such as turning a car around or changing the channel  
 _Weapon manipulation:_ Users can manipulate any piece of technology that has “weapon” as its main purpose.  
 _Applications:_  
control electronic/digital/cybernetic objects,  
trigger computers/appliances or anything with an attachable cord or inserted batteries, repair/induce glitches in technology,  
boost a machine's capacity or speed, if mixed with Body Part Substitution or Cephalophore, users use control eletronic objects as if they were their own body part, creating gadgets and attachments and high-Levels can emit EMPs.  
  
Technology is highly advanced and most races exhibit degrees of religion involving the Old Ones, often to placate them and hope they will slumber, never to return or to simply escape their notice. Genetic modification pre and post birth is often common especially for soldiers to give them the requisite edge in battle.   
  
*the Old Ones are _not_ Lovecraft's Old Ones, just the name given to similar beings in this universe  
  
 **history:**   
Amalia was born into a colonial family, her mother an engineer who taught her daughter the basics over her life and her father a mercenary - her father had enough to buy them a nice house but he was rarely around for his family, often off on assignments but he taught his children how to wield weapons so they could defend themselves. Perhaps not the most normal of families but when Amalia's father went missing when Amalia was sixteen (her brothers 14 and 12 respectively) it meant that she knew enough to take on some contracts to get the money the family needed to survive seeing as her mother didn't want to raise her kids in space when they were so settled. Amalia served two years as a mercenary, often serving lowly positions as a messenger or as potential bullet fodder until she turned eighteen when she was able to apply to enlist with the main mixed galactic fleet as a soldier. Her early years helped her gain exemplary scores although she often found herself in trouble thanks to her attitude, black marks stacking up beside her name thanks to her mouthing off to instructors on a fairly regular basis but she managed to pass, ending up stationed on a succession of vessels, usually working minor peacekeeping and standard ops. Once stationed and as she matured, her attitude dropped to an extent but she often still voiced a desire to take aggressive options, questioning the wisdom of certain decisions she found to be too lenient however she understood her place and felt valued in the military, settling well with her crewmates. Confident and able to think quickly she soon found herself with a long-term posting aboard the _Valiant_.  
  
Merc life came back to bite her in the ass more than once - her father's name had been known and hated for a damn long time and there was more than one attempt made on her to settle an old score but such things were settled quickly and in her favour. A chunk of her wages usually went back home to her mother and brothers until the elder of her younger brother followed in her footsteps, joining the same merc organisation as their father; none of the family had known but her father had been the founder of the merc organisation and had tried to keep his children free of it until he'd thought them ready to fight. Disgusted, she agreed with her mother that she'd run her brother in to the authorities if she ever came across him especially when he had plans to take up where their father had left off with the man still missing. Years later, Amalia would run into her father again when various fleet vessels suffered mercenary attacks, staff dead or missing, weapons and resources gone. She was part of a crew in the area of an attack, chasing after her father as she knew how he fought where she learned that his disappearance had been a plan to work more secretively to amass a fleet that would crush other merc organisations, saying he would still take his daughter back and that they would be able to challenge governments one day. Disgusted, she refused and the pair engaged in a lengthy firefight with the man until she had him pinned, both of them down to the very last of their ammo, armour and shields absolutely shot to hell. Amalia couldn't bring herself to kill her father and instead shot him in the shoulder and cut off his right index finger, saying that she never wanted to hear from him or see him again and to stay away from the family, adding that he should die alone and in disgrace somewhere.   
  
After this confrontation and many years of good service, at the age of twenty-five she was approached to undergo genetic modification as part of an unnamed military program to advance soldiers, making them more effective. She accepted and received several 'upgrades' through surgery. (Detailed in the abilities section). Though offered what some would call better postings, she chose to stay aboard the _Valiant_ and over the next ten years became lieutenant of the ship and the leader of the response team when they went into any sort of dangerous situation.   
  
Whilst galactic life had been quiet for some time, all was not well with the Old Ones and Primordial Beings shaping up for a war with the Old Ones reaching out the creations they had made and abandoned, reaching the ears of a human pilot who ushered monsters back into the world - [this conflict](http://deathwailart.dreamwidth.org/29984.html) kickstarts the return of the Fordrer into the world, the monsters the Seire fought before any other races developed spaceflight.  
  
As one of the closest ships with a full compliment of varying races and specialists, the ship Amalia was stationed on was asked to respond, little knowing what horrors they'd walk into aboard the derelict. Three members of her first response team died when the monsters aboard attacked and the Eksilin member of her team turned on her, shooting her in the leg. Amalia urged their ship to get to a safe distance and only return if she radioed in before she limped off to try to find medical supplies, trying to stay alive to figure out what the hell was going on in the derelict with the surviving members of her response team.  
  
 **HISTORY:**  
Valdís was born in the Óhreinn universe, the one the Old Ones* came to from a place known as the Void and Oblivion and shaped before abandoning when it did not suit their purpose as it weakened them. Instead they left their creations behind to build a civilisation - they possessed greater knowledge of how to travel through space and how to build and so quickly they populated their worlds and moons, each world becoming suited to specific tasks: agriculture, manufacture, fishing and so on and so forth. Some though do not live planet side; Valdís was born on Fjara, a space station located on the outskirts of the Óhreinn system, used as a waystation for people making long exploration trips. One of the few children on the station, she took lessons from the people working there in language, science and engineering and her mother being a great pilot often took her daughter out on shuttle runs to explore. She was taken to nearby planets to socialise her but she never truly enjoyed her time there. Life on the waystation was fairly In her late teens, she went to the planet of Skynheima to study at one of the colleges, studying astrophysics and piloting, her parents making trips when they could.  
  
It was in her final year that Fjara was suddenly lost entirely without a trace. Devastated, she withdrew from all life beyond her studies, graduating and gaining a pilot's license as part of an exploration crew who were chartered to look into the disappearance of the Fjara. Valdís kept herself apart from the crew save for her co-pilot in her individual shuttle, Sigurd who she confided in on long trips out, the pair more or less becoming platonic life partners, the first person she'd managed to open up to since the death of her parents.   
  
The mission turned up very little but Valdís began to notice that something was happening to her. She was seeing things that weren't there or on her nav-console. She was hearing things. She was having strange nightmares where her parents were calling for her only to be ripped apart and contorted into horrible monsters. Sigurd convinced her to go to sickbay where she eventually submitted to being sedated as she was suffering from sleep deprivation from the nightmares and the hallucinations were getting more violent but the nightmares did not abate and worse, she was unable to wake up until the sedation wore off. Being allowed up to walk around for a while after the sedation wore off, she attacked medical staff, thinking they were the things from her nightmare as the hallucinations became more real and she ran to the launch bay, stealing a shuttle to head to co-ordinates that she had been told over and over in the dreams.   
  
Valdís had discovered the Rift, an anomaly that had appeared the night the Fjara was lost, a sub-space portal into uncharted space. Despite launching shuttles to bring her back along with Sigurd pleading with her, she cross over the Rift and in the Void, the Oblivion from which the Old Ones had ventured to create Óhreinn.  
  
In the Void, she learned of the Place Beyond where the Primordial Beings dwelled, the creatures that had created the Old Ones who had made her people. The Primordial Beings were coming for the Old Ones and they needed humans to be transformed into their thralls and into servants now that the race had advanced sufficiently and had proven that the influence of their makers could still manifest itself in their darker choices. The Fjara had been converted into a living ship, its life source drawn from the crew and she was kept there, safe so long as she had her attaché who took a form she was comfortable with, appearing as Sigurd. Her time in the Void was horrendous, being confronted by monsters, learning their tongue by way of emissaries, tiny grub-like forms of the Old Ones (really tentacles of the Old One, cut off to be implanted), attaching themselves to her brain to teach her their language quickly (entering by worming its way under and behind her eye) and another in her heart (entering after she was cut open with no anaesthia or pain medication) that would keep her alive should she try something stupid like killing herself. She was confronted by her parents too, now shambling creatures who lived to serve the Old Ones, a constant source of power for them.  
  
The Old Ones planned to return to Óhreinn to finally use the race they had created as a great army to attack the Primordial Beings, to take their power and gain control of the universe that they came from. Valdís was to be the one to bring them back to Óhreinn although she was told that it was nothing to do with her personally, only that she had been the one to listen to their call when it had been given. She was presented to the Eldest One, the first of the Old Ones to be made who had been weakened by the Primordial Beings. Upon meeting him, she blacked out and woke again, not in a shuttle but in a stasis pod on an unknown ship. When she woke, she was told that she had been found drifting in an escape pod from the wreckage of her ship, all of them slain by some unknown plague, turned into abominations and monsters the likes of which no one had seen before.  
  
Horrified, she tried to escape the ship but was isolated. After that, she attempted to kill herself only to find out that the act was physically impossible. Then, it started. An unknown urge possessed her and she found herself able to use the call of the Old Ones to lure them, bringing them close enough to mark sigils into their flesh, allowing them to be seized by them, their bodies turned into nightmarish forms so that they could spread the influence of whichever Old One (or Old Ones, if more than one sigil was used, allowing for varying forms and for stronger soldiers for the Old Ones in their war) had laid claim to it through the sigil used. The crew were massacred and part of her mind went quiet, the emissary in her mind taking control of her to guide her to a space station to spread the influence again. She left co-ordinates on nav-consoles to the location of the Rift so that more like her could be made to spread the influence to those on the planets. Valdís was safe from being harmed so long as she did not attack the creatures she had helped to create, being seen as their mother figure.  
  
Deciding that she would not allow her race to be turned into abominations for the Old Ones, she began to attack them, fighting them off one by one until her mind was wrenched from her and she sent out a distress signal, being picked up by a shuttle heading to a space station. Full of traffic to and from the planets and other ships, it was the perfect location from which to strike, for the Old Ones to infect through her influence.   
  
**PERSONALITY:**  
Once, Valdís was a normal young woman with a promising future, great under pressure with a tight-knit circle of friends. After the disappearance of the Fjara she became utterly withdrawn from all social activities save what she had to go through, functioning but not truly living, suffering from bouts of insomnia and a complete inability to deal with day to day life. But her desire to know what had happened to her parents and the home she had known gave her something to live for and she managed to make it through to graduation, eventually signing on with an exploration crew; working stopped her from thinking about what might have happened to her loved ones.  
  
She was known on the crew as anti-social as she socialised little, offered little of her personal history and preferred to read in her quarters but Sigurd, her shuttle co-pilot, eventually managed to befriend her during their long hours of patrols together by not pushing her to talk. She does not respond well to people forcing her to do anything as her friends had tried that when she had learned of the disappearance of the Fjara but Sigurd eventually managed by volunteering himself, backing off when she told him to do so and she finally spoke about herself freely.  
  
Alas, things took a turn for the worst.  
  
Hearing the Call of the Old Ones from a distance gave her horrific nightmares and waking hallucinations and she began to see danger at every turn, things that weren't there and believed that she was going insane, terrified she'd hurt herself or someone else and never learn the truth of what happened to her. The sleep deprivation from being too frightened to sleep in the first place combined with being woken from the nightmares increased her sense of paranoia that there was something out there and she is still incredibly suspicious of anything that seems remotely out of the ordinary or that cannot be explained entirely.   
  
With the influence of the emissaries in her body, there are periods of blackout where she is unable to communicate except in the tongue of the Old Ones that is absolutely incomprehensible and sounds like like gargles, screeches and grunts. She is vaguely aware (after the first attack against her original crew where she was so traumatised she completely disassociated with the memory of what she had done or been forced to do) of what is going on when she uses the Call to spread the influence of the Old Ones but she is powerless to fight it. The emissary overrides her if she attempts to warn others of what is about to happen and can control her if she attempts to kill herself although it has allowed her to try as the other emissary in her heart will heal any damage to keep her alive to continue to spread the influence. Her only real hope is that if there are others who are turned in the same way as she that she will no longer be needed and will be allowed to die although she sincerely doubts it.  
  
These days, Valdís does not react well to stressful situations, either going into a complete and utter shut down or the flight or fight response: depending on just how much she is pushed she will either lash out with undue force for an extending period with whatever is at hand or she will run and keep running until she finds somewhere she deems safe enough to hide, retreating into herself, usually rocking back and forward and muttering to herself as she attempts to calm down.  
  
When comes to meeting people, she no longer trusts herself. She will try to warn them if the emissary lets her but usually she keeps her distance. She has killed innocent people and is set to inflict devasting horror on the human race and if someone reaches out to her, she attempts to back off, to warn them that they shouldn't trust her, that she's crazy and that she'll hurt them. She still has nightmares and on her own, she is distraught, unable to escape her fate or to save people, doomed to spread the influence of the Old Ones as far as possible before they are dragged into a brewing war none of them know of.  
  
 **ABILITIES:**   
Prior to passing through the Rift, Valdís was an average human. At her college she studied astrophysics and piloting, she understood how to repair her ships and work with problem computers that had suffered damaged and needed to be rebooted and she took basic self-defense and shooting should she get into any sort of trouble. Fairly fit and well-adjusted, she coped extremely well under pressure.  
  
After passing through the Rift, Valdís gained the ability to speak the language of the Old Ones, understanding their language and their sigils as well as gaining an ability known as The Call. The Call functions like a glamour allowing her to bring people closer to her at the urging of the emissary attached to her brainstem. The person under the influence of the Call will become very calm and forgetful as if they are under sedation and they will not remember what has been done to them, thinking they just fell asleep or zoned out.   
  
Not strictly an ability she possesses properly, the emissary in her heart functions to heal her from any damage, usually very quickly although it can take its time as a punishment and a warning if she has misbehaved. It is the emissaries that stop her from being attacked by the creatures she has helped to make, with her functioning as a 'mother' to them that they will obey so long as she is obeying the orders of the Old Ones.


	3. The Courts

All the gods are real. All of them. And all the supernatural creatures from lore and myths are real too and have a great many prejudices to the point that they settled their differences to create the Courts that are split as follows:  


  * Court Seelie - the 'good' fairies, the summer court
  * Court Unseelie - the 'bad' fairies, the winter court
  * Court Blood Moon - the vampires and werewolves
  * The Spirit Court - ghosts, spirits etc
  * The Damned Court - demons and malevolent creatures
  * The Usher's Court - all psychopomps or those who deal with the dead in an 'official' capacity will be part of this court as well as their own court
  * Court Burning Wings - angels
  * Court Eternal Flame - run by phoenixes, deals with fire associations
  * The Drowned Court - water associations



The Gods do not take part in the duties of the court as a whole but some meddle, most commonly with the Unseelie and Damned courts.  Not everything wants to be associated with the Courts - kitsune are one example of this as well as dragons and the undead.  Both fairy courts take their turns dealing with nature as well as the Gods involved in such things.  
  
These courts came together with the gods and those that cannot be part of courts (ie creatures such as kelpies or those that defy these categories) to create what is known as the Veil. The Veil helps to separate the otherworlds and dimensions from the normal world, thus ending the hunting of supernatural creatures for the most. The fairies for example will live in places like the Otherworld and will only venture out when they need to and the gods, who have powers that are much diminished from what they once were. The Veil is a form of suggestion so that the things that are supernatural can go about their business without too many worries - if someone sees something they shouldn't, the Veil makes them forget it, dismiss it or forms an opinion of what it might be so the world continues as it should. This also impacts on the abilities of the supernatural creatures and gods as they're weaker than they would normally be due to part of their very essence is involved in maintaining the Veil. Some are not pleased with this arrangement.  
  
There is magic in this world and it's somewhat of a wildcard in that it is not the domain of any house and is very different to what any members of any court can do. Magic strikes when and where it will and requires all the courts to keep track of it as it is actually a threat to the Veil as it can disturb it so violently. Those with magic can be and have been little more than pawns due to the amount of power they can wield - many have to be killed by members of the court or hunters as magic is incredibly addictive, rendering the users violent and dangerous.  
  
Added to all this there are hunters who know, to varying degrees, of the creatures that are out there. They want them gone, convinced that it will make the world a safer place - some are children who had werewolf, vampire or fairy parents etc meaning they have a degree of sensitivity towards the supernatural and are able to perceive the Veil. Mediums and so on can definitely perceive the Veil and otherworlds/dimensions and try to keep track of things to make sure the world stays in some sort of balance. Often they have a degree of fairy blood in their ancestry somewhere.  
  
But all is not well with this world as some gods and the unseelie and damned courts are unsatisfied with their lot and seek to subjugate the mortal world, making all humans their slaves so they'll have power. To do this they want to destroy the Veil at the opportune moment and meddle with magic as much as they can, playing courts against one another and the humans too. The hunters are more zealous than ever, abandoning their rules and codes. Others, those sensitive to the supernatural, try to reach out to any who might listen.  
  
And in the midst of all this the supernatural creatures living in the mortal world are trying to live their own lives without getting killed or caught up in all this.  
 **  
Vampires:**

  * enjoy the taste of blood but what they feed on is the life force hence why they have to drink from a living person
  * can go out in daylight if well fed - they dislike very strong sunlight; it causes migraines, sunburns and symptoms like heat stroke
  * averse to religious items but can develop a tolerance to some of them if they're exposed long enough
  * silver is toxic and their image cannot be captured by cameras/videos/mirrors
  * when feeding they can pick up emotions/information/strong memories
  * immortal - can die via starvation, trauma to the heart, removal of the head or prolonged exposure to silver/sunlight
  * 'charm': this is an ability that aids feeding, taught by the fairies. It involves prolonged eye contact and physical contact. It is a form of suggestion so vampires do not out their nature. The person does not remember the vampire or thinks it is all a dream
  * no animosity with werewolves - they make up Court Blood Moon, one of the main powers behind the Veil as they had been hunted so severely
  * none are born vampires, must be made
  * capable of reproducing but it's risky
  * must be invited into a private residence - public is fair game. Permission to enter can be revoked but only by the 'head of the household'
  * near instantenous healing



**  
Werewolves:**

  * can only fully shit into a wolf at the full moon
  * mood affected by lunar cycle
  * silver and wolfsbane highly toxic to them
  * immortal like vampires - they have few children as changing their children is very dangerous and it is hard to separate themselves from their offspring
  * cannot control the need to shift at full moon
  * werewolf form is that of a regular wolf but larger with human intellect although they function on instinct
  * maintain alpha/beta/omega dynamics in packs. Alphas are dominant and to be respected - largest and fiercest; betas are next and tend to be smarter, better at keeping the peace; omegas are last and are more predisposed to be wild - most omegas become betas over time. Pack dynamics change over time and all new werewolves are omegas
  * die more easily than vampires - they heal slower and will bleed more quickly. Ingestion of wolfsbane is fatal - prolonged contact can cause madness then death
  * heightened senses to make them superb hunters - the race with the keenest senses of all the courts
  * strongest when surrounded by a pack - this does not necessarily have to be other werewolves



  
**Vampires & werewolves:**

  * heightened senses: vampires - smell, sight, taste; werewolves - all, most sensitive at full moon
  * stronger than most other supernatural creatures - werewolves are faster at the full moon



**  
Seelie & Unseelie:**

  * have their own fairy magic and much is based on exchange and obligation. Fairy magic can only be used by fairies with the power being drawn from the Otherworlds. During the summer the Seelie are strongest, during winter it's Unseelie. Seelie are more friendly and inclined to mischief whereas the Unseelie are known for their cruelty. Iron is highly toxic to them. Nature falls into the domain of theses fairies - sky and land. Water belongs to the Drowned Court.



_Fairies & Banshees:_

  * Banshees are members of Court Unseelie and the Court of Ushers
  * Like all fairies they have a bit of a blue and orange morality - they follow rules of their own making
  * They are capable of making fairy food: all normal food can taste like dust (and conversely dust can taste like food) to the point that nothing else will be appealing.  Sometimes the nutritional value of the food can be affected as well leading to death by starvation.  Eating food can bring you under the control of the fairy who makes or whoever is in charge of a realm and eating fairy food is seen as the fairy doing you a favour meaning you will owe them.
  * Iron is toxic
  * Exact wording is _incredibly_ important to them as is the correct phrasing
  * They function via a sense of obligation but they are under no obligation to inform anyone about that
  * Fairies and their morality is complicated, functioning on their own sense of honour and their sense of obligation
  * They have issues with empathy (true empathy) and not manipulating the people around them - that requires near constant conscious effort
  * They _hate_ being in debt to anyone
  * Insults or slights count as attacks thus it is in an injury and they will seek to harm the other party in due course
  * A fairy is compelled to honour guest right and cannot injure someone in their own home unless it is their home too



_Obligation & equivalent exhange:_ Harm a fairy?  They _have_ to harm you back.  Obtain something from them?  They _have_ to get something from you.  So if you make a deal it's best to have something there and then that you can provide them because open-ended deals get messy for the other party.  Hence why fairies can't stand charity - they're obligated to return your act of kindness.  A situation must be truly dire for a fairy to make a deal where they have to be the party obligated themselves some unknown future favour.  
  
 _Wording:_ it isn't that fairies can't lie but they enjoy shading the truth - it's one of those annoying Obi-Wan deals working on 'what I told you is true, from a certain point of view'.  If you have an issue with that then too bad, it's your own bloody fault.  This also works with deals - even if you are offered something, someone might not accept it (like Shirley's deal with The Morrigan) until you actually offer it up yourself even if it's expected.  Fairies man, they like life on the complicated side.  
  
 _Geas/geis:_ this is a magical compulsion common in Celtic mythology and all fairies have the power to perform it under the most dire of circumstances.  This magical compulsion has certain conditions that must be fulfilled or else penalties are incurred via fate.  It's usually a command or prohibition, 'you shall/shall not do this' so it works either by a) bringing about its own fulfillment via manipulation of cosmic events or b) by instilling the subject with a compulsion they can't resist.  If the geas/geis is broken, it usually results in death. **  
The Drowned Court** deals with anything to do with water e.g. mermaids, krakens, kelpies  
  
 **The Spirit Court** has a very close association with the **Usher's Court** as Death is everywhere at once so this is how their court gathers the spirits and undead to them. They are often messengers but most choose to depart into the afterlife, being judged by the Gods.

  *  **Demons:**
  * immensely powerful - they have a great deal of strength
  * masters of manipulation
  * able to possess whatever they choose - it depends on the willpower of the individual
  * often associated with an element they can wield to devastating effect
  * fire and lightning are associated with this court
  * once had magic but it was stripped from them - they are the reason magic is chaotic and they view magic wielders as theirs




	4. The Courts - Song for the Banshee

_There's an old power that flows through the maternal line of Shirley's family, one that comes from their Gods, the Gods back in Ireland, the Tuatha Dé Danann, specifically The Morrígan. This power not only granted them magic but also allowed them to sense death before it came and to warn loved ones of impending doom.  
  
The power of the bean sidhe - the banshee.  
  
Shirley is the next in a long line of women who perform their duties in a world where all the old myths and tales are real but hidden to avoid the purges and the fears of bygone days, a banshee who takes grief from the world around her to help those left behind. But this slowly kills her, along with the blood sacrifice involved in her magic, taking a toll on her as the grief grows stronger with every passing generation. Shirley isn't content to fade away however and sets about trying to change her fate, forever changing her family forever._  
  
 **History:**  
Shirley's tale started with Iona who in turned started life as the daughter of Fionn and Elspeth McAlvennie, Fionn an Irish pub owner and the son of a farmer who had raised his son to believe in the old ways which was how he came to know what Elspeth was once they met. Elspeth came from a very ancient line of banshees, albeit a line that had sought to lessen their power to end the line but always a daughter was born, carrying on the line. Iona was the only child, raised to be aware of her power and the true world around her, her mother teaching her to be a banshee and how to use her power. The family lived in Edinburgh and Fionn opened Alea Iacta Est where Iona met Lachlan McAllister, the new boy working her father and eventually they fell in love and married; Lachlan knew of old myths being real which allowed him to gain entry to the pub which had a specialised veil in place to keep the supernatural secret safe. Lachlan had actually witnessed Elspeth announcing his grandfather's death, watching her screaming before transforming into a crow. Lachlan and Iona's marriage gave them twins, Shirley and Cedric, Shirley carrying on the banshee legacy to her mother's dismay.  
  
When Shirley was four, her grandmother passed on to Otherworld, the dwelling of fairies and the Tuatha Dé Danann now, becoming a Shade and a permanent resident, only allowed back to the mortal world on Samhain to see Fionn mimicking The Morrígan's tryst with the Dagda. Other than that, Shirley was raised without incident, a bright, happy girl who knew a great deal about the supernatural from her parents, family friends and from the 'day' crowd at Alea where her grandfather and uncle still worked. Then, Shirley hit puberty and her powers manifested, her mother explaining what they were to her daughter, vowing only to teach her the minimum to hopefully weaken the line further. The Morrígan however had other plans. The fairies (banshee being a type of fairy) had a connection to Otherworld at all times that was strongest when they slept or on days or through events where the boundaries between the two worlds became thin and so while she slept, the Shades of generations past whispered to Shirley of magic she had not been taught, leading to Shirley confronting her mother who refused to teach her more than was necessary. Shirley was already becoming very attuned to death due to the age of the line and the centuries of death and grief that had been passed on to her and her exposure to Otherworld in her dreams only made it worse. Her mother did what she could to shield her, even as Shirley took it to mean that her mother was trying to hide things from her, resenting Iona because of it. Around this time (Shirley being fifteen), one of Shirley's closest friends Cassandra Verity revealed herself to be a Seer, a fact she had to hide from her parents as they had no idea such things were real - Cassandra went on to marry Cedric, having two sons Lennox and Ruadhrí. Shirley asked if Cassandra had seen Shirley using magic and the Seer said yes so reluctantly, Iona handed over old family tomes to her daughter who slowly taught herself spells. All the spells required blood, Shirley's blood and each time she spilled it, she bound herself closer to The Morrígan without knowing what she was doing.  
  
Once she reached eighteen, Shirley went to Otherworld for the first time physically, seeing Elspeth again and the woman tried to warn her granddaughter, saying she had no idea what she was meddling with but being proud and vain (and knowing from Iona of her grandmother being part of the effort to weaken the line too) she refused to listen and underwent the painful ritual of having symbols cut into her skin to seal her spells in place, cut with a bone knife given to her as a memento. Shirley's powers had now come into their own, as had her abilities as a banshee.  
  
Returning to the normal world, she chafed under the bloodline law - while the head of the bloodline, Iona, lived, she would never be as strong as she could be, even with Shirley knowing more magic than her mother. She managed to set her feelings to one side though to go to university to study fashion design along with Cedric and Cassandra, working part time in Alea, meeting and befriending other supernatural creatures, sometimes extracting fairy promises via exchanges. It was here that she met Corbin Curran, a Cù Sìth* (fairy dog) who told her of how banshees in the past had been longlived if they had taken the life of the head of the lineand had offered an exchange in return. Even with her lust for power and fear of being trapped in Otherworld as a Shade for all eternity (along with the weight of the grief that kept building), Shirley balked and refused. Corbin however remained; unknown to Shirley, he was not just any Cù Sìth but a Cù Sìth belonging to The Morrígan, there to ensure her will was done. Part of The Morrígan's plan involved the exchange where the price would be Shirley's daughter with Corbin as the father, putting even more magic back in the line to strengthen her once more. But instead, to Shirley's horror as she didn't want to fall in love as she would only hurt them in the future, she began to fall in love with Blair, the son of a Selkie, his father having hidden his mother's skin and so The Morrígan instead would take their child. Despite herself, Shirley fell in love with Blair and Lachlan and Iona began to hope that it would help Shirley stop wishing for more power. However, as time passed, the cumulative grief of the line combined with her use of blood magic left Shirley feeling exhausted and sick and so she asked Corbin for help, ignoring Cassandra's warnings. Corbin repeated that Iona had to die from a blow from a Dullahan's scythe and so she and Corbin set off to take one, killing the Dullahan in the process.  
  
Shirley waited, biding her time as she sought advice from other Shades who agreed that the time had to be right; Cassandra was pregnant and Shirley had no wish for grief to cloud her unborn nephew and so she waited, planning with Corbin on how to do it. Corbin complained about the delay, trying to goad Shirley into action by asking if she had gone soft. Shirley ignored him, instead wondering what she could offer in exchange as she had nothing to hand that felt appropriate, knowing fairy laws and how unwise it was to agree to a deal with nothing to offer right there and then. Corbin said that this was one such situation where she could not pick what she gave and reluctantly, she waited. After all, she was ecaping a fate imposed by The Morrígan, it wasn't up to her to name the price.  
  
Eventually the time came when Lennox was two (Shirley being twenty-five) and Shirley felt the time was right - she had found out she was pregnant and couldn't delay any longer and Corbin knew that The Morrígan would be pleased as Shirley's child was part of the deal too because she needed that power. Shirley confronted Iona, all of her grief and guilt over her actions to come snarling her up along with the magic sewn into her skin and she ignored her mother's warnings and please, lashing out and killing her with the scythe, being yanked into Otherworld at the moment of death, howling as she did so. Shirley was confronted by a rightly horrified and furious Elspeth, the pair of them arguing as Shirley condemned her mother and grandmother and those before for trying to go against The Morrígan's wishes as her grandmother rightly pointed out that Shirley too was going against those wishes too by escaping her fate, trying to point out that she'd been manipulated. Shirley insisted that she was putting things right for the future. Iona was present too and embraced her daughter, saying she loved her, forgave her and that she was sorry she hadn't protected her. Before she could say more, Corbin appeared, taking Shirley to The Morrígan, who released Shirley from her fate. Instead of living a normal life, Shirley would live in her body as a banshee but would never age or die like the Shades, taking all the grief of her line and giving The Morrígan power in exchange for Shirley's unborn daughter. Corbin was bound to Shirley's service and Shirley was returned to the normal world.  
  
Immediately upon returning, Shirley turned into a crow and fled to Ireland, hiding from her family, setting up shop and hiding what she was and from any of the supernatural community present, with only Corbin around who she resented for lying to her as well as hating herself, the fact that she'd been manipulated and that her lust for power had blinded her to the manipulation. Corbin, even as he'd manipulated Shirley, had cared about her as a friend too and had thought she would have been happy with the outcome but worrying for her and her state of mind, he revealed that Blair was a Selkie's son and that if his mother's skin was found, she could help Shirley's unborn daughter. Desperate to help the banshee, when she asked, he went to hunt for the skin but was met by Cassandra who he confided in; she went to Ireland, forgiving Shirley and saying that the family would too if she explained. Shirley begged her not to and to say nothing to Blair about the baby. Reluctantly, Cassandra agreed returning home to aid Corbin instead where she had a vision of Fionn killing Shirley if she kept her silnce and so she told Cedric, Lachlan and Blair who in turne made Fionn swear that he would do nothing at least until the child was born and they had talked to Shirley. Fionn knew of the plans as he'd caught Corbin, beating a confession out of him but he agreed to still his hands and look for Blair's mother's skin,   
  
The skin was finally located, Blair's mother returning to the sea at last, promising to help how she could and at Cassandra's prompting, Blair asked his mother to claim his daughter as a Selkie, to spare her from whatever The Morrígan had planned if there was no other way out of the deal.  
  
The whole family journeyed to Ireland in order to be there when Shirley gave birth on Samhain, Iona and Elspeth permitted to be with herir spouses where they informed them of Caoimhe's fate - she would be allowed to live under she had a daughter, a daughter would come young after meeting a Gancanagh*, dying in childbirth, becoming a Shade bound to The Morrígan. They told Iona and Elspeth of the plan involving the Selkies but the two Shades said it wouldn't be enough in likelihood. Shirley gave birth, naming the child Caoimhe, gaining forgiveness from her loved ones even if she couldn't accept it, knowing she had caused too much pain and grief that she would have to live with. Nemain, Badb and Macha, three aspects of The Morrígan appeared upon the birth of Caoimhe, proclaiming they would have the girl and as predicted, the Selkie claim meant nothing to them. Desperate, Shirley said that she would give up anything and everything else but that her daughter was allowed to live her life the way Caoimhe's daughter would; a banshee living a long life without the weight of grief upon her, Shirley paying the blood price and carrying the grief. The three aspects smiled and agreed to the surprise of all; Shirley had finally _offered_ something in exchange - The Morrígan had given Shirley her new role but Shirley had not offered it before, reminding her that wording was important, amused at the situation. Shirley actually saying she would give up her normal life and her mortality, offering herself to The Morrígan would be enough so long as Shirley did not stray from her path, teaching the rest magic for generations to come.  
  
Agreeing, and still in shock, Shirley and Blair raised Caoimhe, not a couple but as friends, teaching her of both sides of her heritage and when it was Blair's turn to die, he took his skin, going beneath the waves. Shirley never aged, never died, watching over her family, alongside Corbin, the fairy and her dog.


	5. Red Hoods

What if Little Red Riding Hood was a much more literal rite of passage than most people thought?  Where werewolves have always existed, the Red Hoods hunt and kill them, an order of women armed with guns and knives and knowledge who are sworn to rid the world of werewolves.  Werewolves can be born or turned with a bite, the origins of lycanthropy unknown but believed by the Red Hoods to be a pathogen of some sort rather than a curse.  When werewolves turn they have a skin rather like a selkie that they keep close and wear when they wish to be a wolf.  If stolen, lost or damage they will still turn but have to regrow the skin at the next full moon, an agonising process.  A werewolf can be cured by burning their skin, with rumours of other methods but most Red Hoods believe that once a wolf, always a wolf.  Consorting with a known wolf leads to a Red Hood being disowned and can make them targets.  Werewolves can pick up other wolves by scent and are often territorial but they can and do adopt others into a pack structure.  Some werewolves do not integrate well in society and want to go feral, killing and attacking anything and everything; they are the ones to draw the ire of Red Hoods and other werewolves alike.


	6. Casiatica

Casiatica is a world of luxury for those who have strength and ambition, ruled over by priests/priestesses and adjudicators, the priests/priestesses serving as the religious governance and the adjudicators dictating the politics. There are several continents with Glottianis being the largest and most densely populated, the powerful home of both government and religion, a cultural marvel of beautiful architecture, tall buildings, ports; a realm of taste with a great focus on the arts. Erenova is the capital of Glottianis, the crown jewel where everything important takes place but beneath the beautiful surface lurks dark secrets. The truths put forward by their ruling priests/priestesses and adjudicators is a lie.  
  
Long ago a deal was struck with the forces that created the world and the magic within it. The first adjudicators encountered dark spirits and demons as they practiced their art after which they made deals to seize power and control all the world. There are energies, good, evil and neutral at work in the world of Casiatica with the evil energies the ones easiest to reach out and touch as they wish to have a foothold in the world. Once the adjudicators learned this they made a bargain, an offering of power, bodies they could possess, all to gain an advantage over the good spirits so many pray to. Prayer makes spirits strong - neutral spirits are opportunistic, playing one side or the other or none at all when it suits them, seizing what chances they can - and so with the aid of priests/priestesses, the adjudicators shifted the religion of Casiatica to worship evil spirits that they came to call demons. The adjudicators were granted the power to truly reach out and use any of the energies in the world that could be used but also the art of necromancy and dealing with the dead. They could not wield magic outright for that belonged to the priests/priestesses (magic being a caveat to religious service, allowing them to spread their influence) but they took slaves, holding sway over their minds to use them as weapons, the religious leaders little better.  
  
There is only one language in Casiatica with all other languages outlawed, crushed and denounced as primitive. In some places native languages are taught and spoken but if discovered there are harsh punishments in place. However those in power know and use these older languages to speak with one another so others will not understand them and in their dealings with demons.  
  
Slavery is a common practice in Glottianis with slaves being brought from all over Casiatica to help with mundane tasks and to show how much power and status one has. On the sinister side, they also serve as payment for deals struck by adjudicators meaning that the demons can have a body in the world, ripping out the soul of the person in the body to cast them into a terrifying abyss. Either that or they are used almost as weapons, their personalities and will stripped away to be used by the adjudicators who lack magic. The religious bodies are involved in this too and are involved in taking people, usually as children, to train them and continue the mageocracy. Some are slaves of the most powerful.   
  
Magic, the domain of priests/priestesses, is considered to be power incarnate and if not taught will develop along several lines: it can become uncontrollable resulting in death; it can fizzle out and become nothing; it can cause madness. The priests/priestesses have oracles, the eternal children none can truly explain but who simply were, are and will always be who write down where to find those of magical potential so they can be taken.  
  
What is sometimes known as magic is the realm of the adjudicators. This is not magic at all , rather it is the wielding of energies, dark and divine to draw out spirits, ward places, scry into signs and symbols, influence others and raise the dead. A great deal of blood magic is needed so adjudicators have an assistant, one they confide in who swears their loyalty to the adjudicator before a demon to partake in whatever they are told lest the demon come to torture them for all eternity. This person is used in rituals and rites until they either go mad from it or die. It is considered a great honour as adjudicators will pay a large sum to those who will give a suitable person to them allowing the relatives or one who hands them over their favour, social status or wealth. Once given with their oath of loyalty sworn upon blood it is said to be impossible for their assistant to break free and escape but the truth is that they can although they are mercilessly hunted. The same is true for those of magical potential if they reject the culture of Glottianis but they are usually broken to be what the rulers want them to be.  
  
In Casiatica liquid is a conduit that allows for a form of communication: blood, water or wine (or anything if the will is strong enough) allows for a connection to be made to the other, a ghostly apparition appearing if the liquid is prepared and the name spoken. This is considered to be the communication of the elite so it is prevalent only in Glottianis with everyone else having to rely on letters and couriers. Transportation is by sea with great huge ships with steam turbines for the wealthy or by land using steam trains. Everyone else must use ships with sails or horse and cart if they want to travel and usually travel from one country to another is forbidden to allow the adjudicators to keep track of everyone. Religious ceremony is mandatory with the priests/priestesses sending initiates to every door to bring people to worship with an adjudicator in every town to report back to the capital.  
  
The priests/priestesses also created the monsters who live in packs but will respect one who overpowers them. They are either in human or monster form, powerful and violent.


	7. Dimensions

Bayamo lives in a universe of very small and vastly different dimensions that can readily communicate with one another although interdimensional travel remains difficult and at times dangerous. Alignment of stars is extremely important for travelling with any degree of accuracy as chunks of dimensions can be dangerous. Bayamo's dimension is one of wood and pyramids, forests tapering off into stretches of golden sands where great pyramids have always existed, made by unknown hands. The most common creature is the sandshark that 'swims' through the desert, a creature of limited intelligence although they are dangerous, enough to give travellers a moment of pause. Many people from this dimension possess the power to manipulate the wind, using it to get around more easily. Supplies are traded from and with other dimensions at designated drop-off points as the forests have bountiful plants and animals. The pyramids are full of valuable artifacts with new ones popping up and others sinking - some of these pyramids are supposedly full of hulking monsters.


	8. Ghost Prints

_world info_  
 _Modern era – a little into the future_  
Around the 1960s, people began to notice there was increasing evidence to prove that being “psychic” was actually a real possibility rather than some crackpot theory and with advances in psychology, equipment and a general understanding of how the brain worked, it was shown that yes, there were people who had abilities akin to psychic powers.  
  
These people were small, isolated cases at first and they were taken for medical study, at first voluntarily but later it was declared that they had to be studied in the interests of national security.  
  
It was discovered that the ability was actually the result of a dominant mutation which explained why it could be found in families and soon there was a support network of sorts for the people with the condition who were learning how to control it and what they could do. Many of them moved as discreetly as possible to remote locations to avoid being bothered. Around the turn of the millenia though, things began to take a turn for the worse and the community found themselves facing a new danger; there were reports that they were being abducted to be forced to use their abilities so that their captors could make themselves rich by charging exorbitant fees to have them read or modify memories. The government and police though kept all details hushed – they too were using the community, often for soldiers, criminals or terrorists to find out the real truth.  
  
In hidden communities though, usually remote islands or mountains, communities flourished. It was said that to have their ability was to have a gift, a gift to heal those who needed it and Perdita was raised in such a community. She grew up to be selfless because she is used to the needy asking for her aid in painful memories although there are times when she has been carefully smuggled into larger towns or cities to deal with paying clients. This is often the main source of income.  
  
As there is such a risk of the memory readers losing themselves entirely, they usually have an object that they place their own memories into at the end of each day and it is held during sleep as an anchor. There is also normally a person in their life too who tries to ground them – this person cannot have the memory reader abilities.  
  
In terms of the ability being passed on, it is a dominant mutation so once it is in a family, it usually stays there, building up and up in a family. There are however cases where the gene is not passed on at all and there are varying degrees of severity: some have very limited abilities confined usually to psychometry, others are unable to block out anything and usually go mad. Sometimes there are children who have memories whilst in the womb - this is so overwhelming to brain development that they are stillborn.  
  
 _personal history_  
 **Possible trigger warnings for:** Alzheimer's like symptoms, slavery. **Mentioned:** abuse, rape, torture (as things Perdita has witnessed through viewing memories, not things that have happened to her personally.)  
  
Perdita was born in a remote hidden village with a population of those with the same power(s) as her as well as other people seeking a quieter way of life who work to keep the village itself running. Her parents both had the same abilities as her and worked as healers in their isolated little commune. There wer no TVs in the village, very little popular culture and no real sense of religion outside of beliefs outsiders bring with them; there was a phone line for emergencies and to organise supplies and so on. The town was home to a place known as the Healing House where Perdita's parents worked as memory healers, a large Mediterranean style villa that sits at the top of the hill the village is built on.   
  
Perdita was born with a mutation that allowed her to alter and manipulate memories (see World Setting and Abilities section) which allowed her to sort of function as a living Animus meaning that she had to be raised in a very disciplined manner to ensure she would not allow her childish curiousity to overwhelm her and permanently alter her mind. She didn't go running around like other children, playing. Instead she was taught meditation, to be completely and utterly selfless, to not judge and to control her abilities. She was taught too how to be comfortable with being tactile; with a particularly strong painful or upsetting memory, the memory healers can feel it without touch but to truly judge, touch is required. Usually a stealthy touch, to catch a person off-guard so that a true evaluation could be gained. It was as a small child that she met Clement, a boy who came to the village with his mother and aunt (the aunt having the same ability as Perdita); they got on well and he became what was known as her Grounder, a person who looks after a memory healer to make sure they don't lose themselves too early or get completely lost or forget how to function.   
  
The first lessons of her childhood involved blocking things out, effectively walling off little portions of her mind through meditation so that there would always be a tiny place in her subconscious that was just Perdita which was then channelled into a stone so that Perdita would always be able to access her own memories. Much of her training ended up in the hands of other healers though as her parents became unable to care for her when Perdita was around eleven as they lost who they were, too many other memories from people they had healed bleeding through which was thought to be the fate of more or less all the memory healers who used their ability so often. Clement often asked Perdita not to become a healer but because she had been raised to be selfless, that healing was a duty, she refused and began to train in earnest, gaining a room in the Healing House that she shared with Clement.  
  
Life in the House was quiet, hush enforced as people were brought from the city to be healed from something traumatic either to have the pain taken from them, the memory erased or a memory brought to the surface, the money and goods exchanged for these services kept the village functioning. To keep it hidden, their memory of the village were buried deep by the memory healers who had brought them from the city, the hidden network. Perdita healed many such people, exposing her to the chaos of their minds and their busy modern lives, barely comprehensible to her as well as seeing horrific events: rape, murder, violence, torture, abuse and _feeling_ them. As such, she disliked being touched without warning and harboured a fear of the outside world, choosing to read to try to escape the memories of what she had witnessed. She began to take long walks in the village and around the time she turned twenty, Clement had noticed that she was beginning to slowly lose bits and pieces of herself and her own mind, becoming forgetful about everyday things or about where she was in a village she'd lived in her whole life.  
  
As a growing demand for memory healing made itself noticed, memory healers had to be smuggled out of the village and into the city for the brief periods needed - with the economic crisis, supplies were harder to come by so easily and Perdita and Clement often had to go into the cities for weeks or months at a time to work. Whilst it brought them closer together, Perdita started to crack from the placid, smiling mask, eventually breaking down and crying when she confided that she was truly frightened of losing herself the way she had lost her parents, confessing that her imprinted stone was always able to be touched, to remind herself of who she was.   
  
These lasted until she was twenty-four, with very few issues beyond anxiety, homesickness and Perdita's memory playing tricks on her.   
  
But the relative stability of her life came to a halt when someone got wind of who she was and what she could do, kidnapping her under the guise of an appointment. She was knocked out and smuggled off to a holding facility that was full of others like her, barely trained, frightened and beaten and as one of the 'outsiders', she was to teach them as best she could. It was little better than slavery, a black market trading in personal 'pets'; they took memories away, altered them for the profit of their 'master' and were sold to governments and all sorts of organisation, stripped of their rights. Clement had known of such things, or the rumours as there had never been any concrete proof but he had kept it from Perdita so as not to stress her more than being away from home already did. The situation terrified her, put her out of her comfort zone entirely but it was her _duty_ to help and so she did as she was told - the price for not helping was her stone being taken and she needed that to remember where she was. Perdita was moved often between little groups and in each place, she left an imprint of herself, desperately hoping Clement was looking for her somewhere.  
  
And indeed, Clement was.  
  
Forced into more and more extreme bouts of memory healing and teaching, she started to lose her grip on who she was until she broke down in the middle of being made to wipe the memories of a powerful politician, planting new memories instead and as a punishment, her stone was taken from her. Clement, still searching for her along with some other healers and allies noticed how distorted her imprints were becoming until it was simply just a pale ghost of Perdita saying Clement over and over. Instead of remembering herself, Perdita remembered where she had been, the people who would need her help until she managed to gather allies in her own group to escape their captors at a rest stop, searching for her stone. In a fit of rage, her kidnapper shot the others who had helped Perdita before throwing her stone away.  
  
All her memories lost, she shut down and became compliant, teaching and healing but still leaving fainter and fainter echoes, a habit she couldn't stop but couldn't explain either. She almost seemed to be at peace, either having grown accustomed to the life she lived until Clement found her again, hoping she would have managed to hang on long enough to be okay, to be able to be fixed. Clement was the only thing she could remember: his face, that they were close and that he was _safety_. Nothing else remained, not even her name; some of the children called her sister or mama but very few others cared after learning that those who aided her in escape attempts had been killed for it.  
  
In the end, Perdita was separated long enough from Clement and more importantly, the stone that contained all of her memories, that the stress overwhelmed her; she assembled a personality from fragments but Perdita ceased to exist. Clement and the others reached her but it was too late and the damage was irreversible, Perdita effectively a blank slate who thought only of healing minds. Devastated, Clement took her home to the village in the hopes it would do something,that she might find old imprints of herself in the village and the healing house but when she did not, his guilt and perceived failure to save her crushed him. He left the village for several years before returning with a daughter and few explanations, naming the child Perdita; she had the memory healer abilities and it was his Perdita who trained her. Clement found it too painful to stay and instead made brief trips, helping to free other memory healers with the groups who had risen up to fight against the injustices against them, with Perdita becoming a beacon of hope and a warning in one.  
  
 _Perdita will be coming from a point two years before she is kidnapped_  
  
 **AGE:** 22  
 **APPEARANCE:**  
Fairly tall and slender - could almost be described as lanky, noted for having long legs. Thin from eating healthily coupled with a tendency to forget to do so and from going on long walks. Pale skin that refuses to tan but freckles instead, especially across her cheeks/the bridge of her nose and along her arms. Pale green eyes and long, dark brown, almost black hair, usually worn down or tied back out of her face. She tends not to wear much in the way of jewellery save for very long pendants that she likes to fiddle with and a selection of rings she likes to wear. In the warm weather she wears floaty dresses or thick jumpers/cardigans and jeans in winter. She goes barefoot and as such her feet are pretty gross and full of calluses. If she must wear shoes, she prefers flip-flops or sandals.  
(PB is Jacquelyn Jablonski)  
  
 **PERSONALITY:**  
 _his covers her personality pre-kidnap as so much alters and I have no real plans to play her beyond the initial kidnapping event._

> I have walked through many lives, Some of them my own, and I am not who I was  
> \-- Stanley Kunitz 'The Layers'

Tactile, quiet and personable, Perdita is content to sit back for the most part to observe the people around her but when drawn into conversation, she is happy to talk and will often casually touch the person often, fleeting little touches to their hand, arm or knee, just to allow her to get a feel for their memories. She could be best described as reserved - she lets someone else speak first, lets them pick the activity but she likes to be in her set routine of quiet and meditation and reading old books curled up in a chair. She is extremely polite though and if someone looks like they need help, she will go to them immediately to do what she can and apologise profusely if she can't help them - helping is a duty and she has been brought up to believe helping others is her main job in life. She rarely puts her own needs first, if at all - Clement, her Grounder, is the one who has to remind her of things. Her habit of wandering around barefoot is one of the few whimsical things she allows herself - she leaves little imprints of herself, a ghostly image for a moment, her voice, her feelings, even a scent as she goes. This usually helps someone to find her when she gets lost.  
  
Something to remember when dealing with Perdita is that she has seen many things she did not want to see. She has seen rape. She has seen all sorts of violence. She has seen torture. She has seen pain. Worse, she has felt it. She knows that it is not hers but if she becomes stressed, she remembers how it felt and she comes close to lashing out, especially after witnessing something particularly triggering to her, she will yell and jerk away if someone touches her without expecting it. Usually meditation and channeling her own memories into her imprinted stone will help but things linger and resurface and they are things that are generally not spoken of and she doesn't want to upset or worry Clement so she keeps it to herself. She sympathises hugely with people who have been hurt in such a way and has a hard time coming to terms with the fact that another person would willingly inflict such harm on another human being.  
  
Although she would never give up her abilities, she is very afraid of the consequences of them. The thought of losing herself scares her as she can feel it happening, can feel little parts of herself becoming foreign - she remembers them but they're like false memories, things you remember only through a photograph or a story or in this case, replaying the memories. She has seen her parents and although they are at peace and dutiful, the unknown scares her. In fact, being out of a comfort zone or a safe space (safe space usually meaning without Clement or someone trusted within a few feet) tends to have her skittish, looking for ways out. On a more serious note, Perdita is already showing the signs of her abilites: she has what translates best to early onset [Alzheimer's Disease](http://helpguide.org/elder/alzheimers_disease_symptoms_stages.htm#signs) She has lived in the same village all her life but she frequently gets lost if she goes out walking on her own (but due to her liking the idea of the village she lives in being where memory is pressed into the ground, she often leaves imprints without knowing so that someone will eventually find her) and she can completely forget entire conversations - this has been going on for the past few years of her life and so she's very accustomed to it and tries not to panic because panicking makes it harder for her to cope or to remember. From her current canon point, she is starting to forget other things - she's beginning to forget the names of her family members (not the immediate family but aunts/uncles/cousins/grandparents) and she has trouble sometimes with remembering the names for things. She finds this to be more frustrating than forgetting where she is or what she was talking about because she has to derail her conversations to try to come up with an answer and when she does, they aren't so much from her memories but the memories of others.  
  
Blurring of her memories is also a problem. Some of the things Perdita 'knows' are not her own, they're little lingering remnants of others she's healed and so she can start an anecdote or say something related to pop culture only to realise that she has no clue how she really knows it or why she said it in the first place. If she chose to, she could learn skills from it as some have ie learning how to speak another language, learning to fight, learning how to fix an engine but it comes with a cost she is unwilling to pay.   
  
Clement is an important part of Perdita's life and while it may look as if she makes decisions, she normally lifts her voice up at the end, turning it into a question and either Clement will step in himself or she will look at him or touch him so that he knows she's waiting for his opinion. She trusts Clement absolutely and they've been friends since she was born - Clement is her Grounder, the person that reminds her of everything, that looks after her and his opinions are the main factor in influencing her decisions. She can cope and survive without Clement but Clement is better at reading people in the here and now and he functions more as her helper; he helps her remember where she's meant to be, what she's meant to be doing. In abax she is likely to try to find one or two people she can trust and try to check in with them as often as she remembers.  
  
A final little quirk is that she leaves notes to herself/writes things on her own body. Again, this is to help her remember things that she's doing and is a lot more common when she's out of the village as she gets very confused, leaving things in strange places, especially if Clement has to leave her alone to go shopping or to meet with someone.  
  
  
 **ABILITIES:**   
I apologise for just how long this is, I'll have a permissions post set up so people can fill it in etc. Anything the mods want to scale back is fine as well as talking about what she could pick up from touching buildings in the city.  
  
Perdita does not yet possess the ability to read biotic information through her psychometry and she is still learning so she isn't always accurate in what she does but she's been learning how to do this since childhood so she knows what she's doing.  
  
 **Retrocognition**  
 _Capability:_ a person enters a rather trancelike or meditative state while they see and hear a noted past event that either is their own past or the past of another. Sometimes, if the memory is particularly powerful, it will happen spontaneously simply from being in a place say the site of a violent murder or from being around someone with a very vivid memory in their mind. With training, the person with the ability can evoke a vision whilst completely conscious and cognizant of what's going on around them.  
 _Methods:_ empathic sensation - they can pick up the feeling of the memory (sad, painful, angry, happy etc)  
touch - by touching someone, they are able to enter their mind to read the memory or memories of the person they are touching  
 _Limitations:_

  * May be unable to notice present surroundings.
  * May need specific concentration.
  * May unwillingly perceive collective knowledgeable attachments.
  * May gain instability from attained knowledge.
  * May become infected with information.



  
Perdita carries a stone at all times that she has had since childhood that contains only her memories to help to counteract the above problems of forgetting who she is and what she belongs to her but she still has issues with this at times.  
  
 **Psychometry**  
 _Capability:_ a person's ability to read or perceive the residual information of an object by touching it i.e. who held it, what they did with it, who it really belongs to if stolen. So in essence, the historical memories and often sensations are obtained. With training, biotic 'objects' like hair or skin or bodily fluids can be read.  
 _Techniques:_

  * Temporal replay - to mentally and visibly project moments in time for observation either for themselves or for others
  * Psychic imprint - to leave an imprint. Perdita is particularly skilled at this and can leave behind her own memories or those of others either as though the person were there, experiencing all that she experienced or as visual or audio imprints (ie they'll see something or a person or hear something or a person)
  * Medical detail - to learn a person's health which can be critical. [Perdita does not possess this skill as she cannot read biotic objects yet]



  
**Memory Manipulation**  
 _Capability:_ a person can control, modify, suppress, fabricate, influence, repair, restore, erase detect and view memories. They can change memories to confuse, to wipe away certain memories to cause amnesia, discern and provoke nostalgia or even let the person whose memory is being viewed to see it again. Being sought of as a healer - healing past traumas by erasing or suppressing or restoring memories is the main job Perdita has; repairing a memory to them involves taking the feelings associated with the memory into themselves, removing the pain and allowing the person to move on with their life.  
 _Limitations:_

  * Control can be lost if rushed or if the person performing it is stressed
  * Confusion between self and non-self memories
  * Difficulty when discerning manipulated and normal memories
  * Memories of others can overwhelm the user



  
_Link with_ **retrocognition** \- while **retrocognition** normally is resistant to this power, with Perdita's people being able to perform both, it's considered a form of shielding and protection to help them remember who they are so long as they are trained equally in both. As seen below in the techniques it is very linked to **retrocognition**  
  
 **Techniques:**

  * Déjà-vu - to replay a specific memory.
  * Refresh - to replay a subject’s recent optic temporality
  * Psychic Disguise - remove yourself from target memories
  * Memory Doors - users can lock memories away for only their use.
  * Memory Restoration - recovering damaged or old memories
  * De-Suppression - recovering hidden memories
  * Memory Erasure - erasing a certain memory
  * Manual Reset - dumping all previous memories, so that one may start fresh.
  * Memory Absorption - to watch memories from target and subsequently lock memories in users brain.
  * Supersede - place oneself in memories of target (To act as a loved one or old friend)
  * Memory Projection - create a Holographic Projection of a person's memory to be view by people in the same room.



  
_Variations:_  
 **Identity Erasure** \- a variation of Mnemokinesis (or rather, Memory Erasure) that allows one mentally erase memories of oneself from others’ minds. One with this ability could delete their name as well as memories or knowledge associated with them from the mind of any person with which they have had previous contact, as long as they are in close-enough range. One with this ability could use this to start a new life, or evade the pursuit of powerful foes. Sometimes, however, one may also be able to delete the identities of others (even from their own memory).  
 **Memory Erasure** \- also known as Memory Wiping or Mind Wiping is the psychic ability to mentally delete the memories of others through a touch, a kiss or mental contact. When used to its max potential, this ability has no limit; the user could completely remove the short-term and long-term memories of others, leaving the victim in a comatose state.  
 **Memory Recollection** \- also called Mnemonic Recall is the ability to psychically bring things back to subjects’ memory. This ability negates Amnesia (both the ability and the condition) and Memory Erasure (it even combats the effects of Alzheimer’s and the like, so memory does not unnaturally deplete over time as it often does in old age). This can even bring back childhood memories, repressed memories, etc. However, this ability can also bring back painful memories in foes (or cause memory to sporadically act up, recalling sounds, smells or other experiences at inappropriate times) (This works for the subject, **not** for Perdita)


	9. The Horrors

Once Nethantea* was a peaceful land where the wild animals roamed, plants and trees growing, seas and rivers too as the sun god and moon goddess looked down upon it with all the stars, their children.  They thought the world lonely and longed to have others they could speak with and teach their wisdom and skills to for animals could not learn them and so they made the elves and peopled Nethantea with them, teaching them a variety of skills as they watched them prosper - for all the light touched was theirs, even beneath the earth and sea for the land and waters themselves were touched although they had less influence there so the elves loved them not.  
  
But all was not well.  Beneath the world in a void space these gods and goddesses did not know of came the horrors as the gods and goddesses had little influence upon the places beneath the world.  They wore the skin of the elves and had terrible powers to manipulate fire, ice, nature, wind, water and even darkness itself and swayed many elves into being their followers with the promise of power.  Some stayed loyal to the original gods and goddesses they had followed for so long but others went with these new rulers who played them against each other in terrible battles and skirmishes.  The horrors all wanted to become the strongest of them all so that the strongest would be able to topple the original gods and thus rule Nethantea and enslave all to their will.  
  
The Fire Folk - the first to split off following their abomination (female) of fire who gave that gift to them as well as the shape of the lion  
The Drowned Folk - the second to split off to follow a water abomination (female) who summoned great sea monsters as well as swelling seas to swallow whole lands or reaching out to rivers to turn them against others  
The Forest Folk - the third to split off.  Their abomination (male) was one of the forest who gave to them the forms of huge wolves as well as the power to twist trees, grasses, plants and the land to their will  
The Wind Scourges - the fourth to split off.  An abomination (male) of wind who ruled all that lived in the skies, giving them the power to harness the wind as well as command birds to do their bidding and to take the form of birds  
The Frozen - the fifth to split off.  An abomination (female) with a kingdom of ice granting this power to freeze all and wield it against their foes  
The Shadows - the last to split off.  An abomination (male) who ruled over all darkness to steal the light, the strongest of the horrors and who negates the gifts of the gods.  Blood magic is a requirement of this.  
  
Those who stayed with their original gods moved often to find places that were safe, in the end building temples and as the the horrors began to increasingly attack others instead of those who refused their gifts, more and more fled to return to their original gods who welcomed their lost children back with open arms to prepare for the battle to come that would completely change the face of Nethantea.  
  
[Neth-an-tay-a, th as in thigh]


	10. Shifters

shifters

  * a portion of the population are born with an animal marking on their skin
  * this marking denotes an association with certain values in the future
  * the more a person shifts the more prominent those traits become
  * there is a level of prejudice based on marking
  * not uncommon for people to call themselves by their mark when talking to others
  * cannot speak when shifted
  * shifters and their status tend to vary - currently losing their status



  
  
world name: Tunatrul

  * steampunk world with no magic minus the shifters
  * the gods worshipped were animals but worship has fallen out of fashion with the number of shifters dropping
  * current empress:
  * no one can predict if their child will be born a shifter or not
  * some shifters are disowned/abandoned
  * marks can be removed but it does not stop shifting, instead it causes constant pain




	11. Sky Pirates

**Generic World Information:**  
The world itself is named _Ifarin_ (if-arr-in) and it has three layers of sky:  
  
 _Immediate:_ the immediate level is the sky from sea level to the highest mountain peaks (The Fangs)  
 _Median:_ the median level is from the end of the immediate level to the highest recorded flight record of airships. This is the main level of sky that arial craft can traverse.  
 _Celestial:_ the celestial level is the highest level - things have been observed flying in it but there are no islands and no ship has ever successfully managed to enter the celestial sky without the ship being destroyed and the crew dying. In ancient legends, this is the home of the dragons.  
  
The Median sky is populated by small sky islands and more recently, the sky stations which allow for refueling and repair so that crews don’t have to descend back to the land. There are a few expensive resorts in production (only one has been completed) - the sky resorts are artificial, floating cities that the wealthy retreat to, boasting spas, luxury boutiques and an array of relaxing activities.  
  
There are great swathes of sea on the planet Ifarin, the largest splitting the world in half (it runs North to South, splitting the world into the East and the West) which is known as The Great Serpent or The Ouroboros as it has a wider basin at one point that looks somewhat like the mouth of a snake before the ‘tail’, as if it is devouring itself. There are two great landmasses on the ‘straight’ of the snake (ie not on the area around the ‘mouth’) and they peak into a large mountain, one on each side of the sea and are known as The Fangs. There are many islands dotted about and the snake’s mouth is the richest fishing ground in the world. In the past, before the advent of skyships, people had the choice to remain on the island they had been born on or to risk a dangerous sea voyage - the creatures found in the seas are noted for their size and ferocity, capable of destroying and devouring ships, even the largest warships.   
  
The islands (those located on Ifarin proper) vary in terms of size and habitat and wildlife - the further they are from the two main landmasses though, the more wild they often are and there are several that have either had no humans living on them or they have been abandoned since travel became safer. The main continents are _Scera_ (ske-rah) which is located to the West of the Great Serpent and _Firash_ (Fi-rash; fi as in fish) to the East of the Great Serpent and they are the most urban areas in all of Ifarin with cities and towns; they are the central hubs for politics, education, the military and the economy - in essence, they control Ifarin. Very rich, they depend on the outlying islands for resources and materials and later pay for wanted items from the sky islands. There is still poverty in the cities, more harsh than on other islands. There is a wide bridge that connects Scera and Firash over the Great Serpent.  
  
Currency:  
Red: 1 pence  
Orange: 2 pence  
Yellow: 5 pence  
Green: 10 pence  
Blue: 20 pence  
Turquoise: 50 pence  
Purple: 1 pound  
  
All coins are round with a square hole punched through them.  
  
Notes are also valued by colour (there is no orange note):  
Red: 1 pound  
Yellow: 5 pounds  
Green: 10 pounds  
Blue: 20 pounds  
Turquoise: 50 pounds  
Purple: 100 pounds  
  
Notes all depict landmarks like the Great Serpent or The Fangs or historical buildings etc.  
  
The sky islands tend to have a more trade based economy as do some of the smaller islands. Coins are seldom kept in purses - they are more often strung onto necklaces, bracelets or pins with the notes kept in much the same way. This has helped to reduce pick-pocketing.  
  
 **Religion:**  
There is no formal religion as such. There are creation myths on various islands but no named deities - at most there is Gods/Goddess/Stars as an oath or invocation but it is still rare. Some believe that there are gods in the Celestial sky but again it is not spoken of much.  
  
 **Society:**  
On the land there is the human population, averaging a lifespan of 100-200 years (100 for the poor, 200 for the wealthy) spread throughout various ethnicities, professions etc. The sky islands are also human but with some differing characteristics but little is really known about them. At most they have names which are given by the people of Ifarin that may not be the name the people themselves use.  
  
Slavery is relatively common for the supremely wealthy, often young people from outlying islands or the poor from the slums. The Emperor and Empress who rule own many slaves. Politicians and really anyone with the money will have at least one slave who is branded with irons are their throat, neck and ankles. Slaves can earn their freedom but it is very rare that they will manage. Many slaves are executed for trivial reasons too because as soon as they are branded, they cease to be a person and are instead a possession. Slaves can and do run from time to time and they are either caught and punished or caught, punished and killed. Some will find another to help them out of their shackles and collar and will enter a lesser sort of slavery to pay of this debt. These people will eventually enter society again although this is more common with those branded once they are adults as the young tend to give up and accept their lot in life far quicker.  
  
 **Language:**  
Over the years, the language has more or less standardised to the point that it is known as Universal Standard (English with a lot of loanwords from modern Romance languages: Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, Catalan) with the sky islands having their own (English but with loanwords from German/Old English).  
  
 **Royalty:**  
Scera and Firash both have an Emperor and Empress who rule and between them they control Ifarin - the Government must bring things before them so that they can decide whether they approve or not. The minor nobility - Lords and Ladies granted powers are given a vote too. The royals often claim to be descended from the Celestial sky and more or less control the world; over one thousand years ago they were the ones to begin the stories that there were no Gods as they were the closest the world would ever have to Gods and no one would ever dare to destroy them. They are now utterly corrupt. They were the ones to begin true slavery as an institution when they tired of having to pay their servants. Slaves are branded by the collar and shackles they have to wear which are usually still hot when they’re put on (not hot enough to cause a grievous wound but hot enough to leave scars) and in some cases there are other brands or tattoos added. Pleasure slaves do not have the traditional brands unless they were a different slave first and they often have floral tattoos instead. Some slaves have the initials of their owner marked into them.  
The Emperors and Empresses do not have names that are known to the public and are instead known by their titles.  
 _Scera_  
Emperor - The Golden Lion  
Empress - The Gilded Harp  
  
 _Firash_  
Emperor - The Resplendent Peacock  
Empress - The Indigo Ermine  
  
 **Fashion:**  
Fashion varies according to income and climate; the poorest members of society wear rough, homespun fabrics in duller colours with the rich wearing finer things like furs and silks, often embroidered and decorated. Those in ministerial positions wear heavy robes of office and the royalty and nobility wear extremely elaborate garments. Sky pirates are usually the most oddly dressed, functioning outside the normal social circles, many crews adopting a theme for dressing to mark them as belonging to their own group.  
  
 **Airships:**  
Airships come in a huge variety of shapes and sizes with constant new innovations as the technology is only 150 years old at present. Some airships are for tours, others for exploration and research but they’re for piracy too. They are powered by a substance known as Beatha (bay-ath-ah; soft ‘th’ as in thigh) which can be found naturally or created artificially - the artificial Beatha is actually better and safer as natural Beatha contains impurities that are toxic and it can also cause explosions. Most machinery runs on Beatha which is other found in solid form meaning it must be melted down into a liquid or in gaseous form from sea vents.   
  
**Industry:**  
Most labour is done by people. There are no production lines or machines replacing people - it is around the Victorian era in terms of equipment available with some additions, so along the lines of steampunk.  
  
 **Dragons:**  
Mythas about dragons are more popular than any other myths of Ifarin and there are those who study alleged dragon remains; dragons once populated Ifarin but humans began hunting them after dissecting their corpses, finding out myriad uses and so they began to hunt the dragons. The dragons departed to the Celestial sky (where there are indeed islands). The anicent gems that adorn the crown of each Emperor and Empress are crystallised dragon eyes. Dragons are now dismissed as ancient myths.  
  
Dragons do not ‘breathe’ fire but rather they have two great stones in their throats that spark when they growl - their breath contains combustible gasses which catch light with the sparks. _Beatha_ is all that is left when a dragon dies and falls through the levels of skys, bodies burning up and it dissolves in ocean vents or compacts into solid masses. Dragons live for thousands of years and survive by leeching energy from the sun, moon and stars as there is very little to hunt in the Celestial sky.  
  
 **Magic:**  
Magic is real in Ifarin but is something that must be taught and teaching has fallen out of practice since the old days now that life (for the most part) is easier with the machinery available and the airships. The Sky Island residents are far more adept at magic.  
  
Everyone is born with an affinity for some form of magic, varying from weak to strong:  
* Wood  
* Fire  
* Earth  
* Metal  
* Water  
  
For most now it is only represented in moments of great distress but they tend to carry into their personality instead.


	12. The Squad

On Mirietar, a planet in the Tirontias system (star with orbiting planet) of the Erennia cluster in the Ormand Hibianea galaxy.  Mirietar is the only planet known so far to have sentient life on it and is a large planet with two moons, Ibea and Itis, meaning it is subject to strong tidal forces.  Mirietar once had what was called 'magic' but is really a form of energy that can be gained from what scientists now categorise as bacteria who evolved via endosymbiosis with single-celled organism that, as a result of one of the minerals one organism had fed on for generations, it produced a certain energy that caused changes in human physiology to the point that some developed what they believed to be 'magic' if they were in areas with a high concentration of these bacteria that then began an endosymbiotic relationship with the humans near them although no one is quite clear on the origins of this.  The mineral too if turned into vapour via heat or found dissolved in water can induce similar but weaker effects and religious worship or sites of wonder in the ancient days sprang up in areas that were much later found to be associated with these minerals.  
  
In Mirietar there are forms of energy, specifically telekinetic-telepathic energies leading to them being called kinepaths.  A still small percentage of the population have these.  All kinepaths are also empaths as the mental and emotional associations are what help them to access their powers and visualisations or having certain triggers they've had placed within their amps helps them to use their powers effectively.  Kinepaths need a series of surgeries to be able to use their powers as they're usually unstable and weak without them and thanks to their rarity, the government or more importantly the military, want to keep track of them and utilise their skills.  At an early age they are taken for training and surgical procedures that involve having implants grafted to their nervous system, mostly along the spine but often going down to the fingers as well and anywhere else they may be needed for the abilities of the kinepath to function correctly.  The first few generations had many flaws including a complete loss of control or serious damage to the nervous system even with the advanced technology of Mirietar but with experimentation and time, they eventually perfected the process right around the time they became seriously interested in space travel.  Kinepaths are treated with a great deal of hostility which is why many view military life or crime as their only options to help avoid violence.  
  
 **Categories:**  
Technos - ability to control and manipulate electronics and machinery  
Cryptos - ability to study and hide information and to crack and encrypt anything  
Pyros - ability to control, produce and manipulate flames  
Cryos - ability to control, produce and manipulate ice  
Fulgars - ability to control and produce electricity, lightning, electrons and in some cases magnetic fields  
Astras - ability to control light to the point of being able to absorb it, also have an astral connection and can glean information from stars  
Biopyschs - ability to manipulate living tissue  
Toxis - possess bodily fluids that can form any sort of toxin, can manipulate the bodily fluids of others to become toxic  
Viridis - ability to control and manipulate plant life - flowering plants, ferns etc down to green algae  
Aquas - ability to control and manipulate water including the molecules in air  
Haemos - ability to control and manipulate blood  
Osteos - ability to manipulate bone  
Dermas - ability to change their skin to another substance or to strengthen it  
Poenas - ability to manipulate pain, both mental and physical  
Anemois - ability to control wind and air  
Oscillos - ability to control sound resulting in voice manipulation as well as sonic frequencies that can shatter objects etc  
Animas - ability to communicate with animals and control them  
Alchemis - ability to transform things at the atomic level  
Seismos - ability to control earth (lava, rock, mineral) as well as to cause seismic activity  
Chronos - ability to manipulate time or the perception of time  
 _more to be added_  
  
The Squad is a unit containing a surprising amount of kinepaths, all raised and trained through a government program to develop the best possible kinepaths and soldiers to allow them to explore space more safely as there are concerns about the life they might encounter out there.  As well as that, they help to regulate environmental and natural disasters and work as a peacekeeping force now that humanity has established colonies on other worlds to mine for more minerals and to help deal with the overpopulation crisis that had threatened.  Every squad must have at least one non-kinepath member.  This is a security measure created by the military as, in event of the kinepaths rebelling, the non-kinepath is to activate a signal that causes the amp system to self-destruct, killing any kinepaths in the vicinity.  
  
Gaila: team leader, soldier, the non-kinepath on the team, experienced with a variety of weapons  
Dex: second in command, a talented biopsychkinepath, he also has skills in toxi, haemo, fulgar, pyro and cryokinepathy  
Saoirse: newest squad member with a different generation of implants to them, skilled in pyro, cryo, seismo, aqua, viridi and anemoikinepathy, member of the team in charge of crowd control when facing opponents, able to deal a devastating amount of damage but able to take little in return  
Leonora: skilled in derma, poena and osteokinepathy, can take the brunt of attack but does not deal out much on her own, instead concentrating fire to allow other squad members to attack  
Jasper: an infiltrator, skilled in crypto and astrakinepathy, uses his skills to sneak in and out  
Nathan: the tech specialist of the squad, skilled in techno, alchemis and fulgarkinepathy, involved in mainting amps, implants and armour for the team  
  
A rival faction has sprung up concerning kinepaths who believe they should all be implanted with control chips to make them obedient who have their own kinepaths they take via abduction or creat through experimentation, selecting for those with devastating abilities that they use for espionage and violent acts.  They are in a race to explore other star systems before the main government body to gain public support.


	13. It's a New Age

**History:**  
Asiceos is a large world boasting five continents: Panysor at the north, extremely cold, Tracus to the south, mostly hot, Ethica to the west, Estya to the east and central Euphernaia. In the beginning of history Asiceos was ruled in many different fragmented kingdoms where elves fought elves and dwarves fought dwarves and humans fought humans until they slowly learned to get along with themselves before turning around to fight each other at times. Beneath the earth and the mountains were ruled by the dwarves who created vast settlements that grew rich from their efforts mining and crafting, the first to discover fuels and how they could be used. The elves had their forests and wild spaces and were the ones to excel at agriculture making themselves important as dwarves were poor farmers. The humans preferred to sail and built the greatest ships, travelling from one continent to the other and never truly settling unless it was by the coast. The ancestral homes of the humans were Panysor and Tracus; unlike the other races as elves had always been found on all five continents of Asiceos and the dwarves could not recall where they came from as they tunneled so well that they connected every continent to one another even beneath the seas.  
  
The continents all have three kingdoms apiece, each ruled over by one of each race and each kingdom has a capital city that functions as a central hub and they take turns at hosting one another there for official business.  
  
Before the revolt and formation of the dark forces, Panysor and Tracus had kingdoms ruled in the same way as Ethica, Estya and Euphernaia but they became homes of the dark forces as they engulf both polar regions. Much of what was ended up destroyed and the climates, which had been fierce but able to boast life if it was adapted became wild and untamed so that only the dark forces could survive there.   
  
The first war of the dwarves and elves began over naming convention resulting in gender confusion resulting in perceived insults and hurt feelings. It lasted a hundred years.  
  
The second war of the dwarves and elves began over the dwarves chopping down trees for use in the crafting of tools as the elves felt they were causing irreperable damage so they went to war. It lasted a hundred and fifty years and ended with the elves teaching the dwarves about sustainable land management and the dwarves showing the elves how to make better tools for agriculture as well as establishing proper trade links between their people.  
  
The war of the humans and elves began not long after the second war with the elves and dwarves ended and was over the same reason as the war before. The humans who were master sailors began to cut down the forest to build more and more ships and the elves fought back. The humans looked to the dwarves for support, trading them precious stones from the sea in exchange for weapons but as the dwarves were technically arming the elves at the same time, they were not considered to be a part of the war. After twenty years the war was resolved by treaties being drawn up between the humans and elves again about sustainable use and the humans taught the elves living closer to the coasts how to fish properly to supplement their diet.   
  
This war also truly started the race of half-elves due to increased contact and marriages being encouraged between high ranking elven figures and captains and rulers to help bolster good relations. However, an unforseen consequence of this was the emergence of a splinter group of elves who were unhappy with what the humans had been granted but more to do with the fact that one of the elven leaders spoke of engaging in a relationship with a human queen of the seas. This elven ruler tried to negotiate that the three of them could be very happy together and that they could help to show a strong united front to build a new stronger kingdom with but the other elf was hurt and disgusted. Leaving, he tried to kill the pirate queen in hopes that it would sour the treaty that had been newly signed but she foiled him. He went into hiding and returned in secret to spread lies and malicious tales of the humans and elves and dwarves who were disgruntled with the changes in their world followed him.   
  
So began the invasion first of Panysor, the most northernly continet of Asiceos with the elves using their magic to freeze the land. The combined armies of elves, dwarves and humans could do nothing and those captured were made into slaves as well as some of the smaller tribal races of Panysor, the orcs and goblins, being made into an army through the false tales that were spread. The same thing happened to the south only the heat became unbearable to those not permitted to be there by the self-proclaimed dark lord. The kingdoms there were lost and few escaped and the vast roads the dwarves had constructed beneath the seas were destroyed and the seas close to the land were full of ice or lava. Panysor and Tracus were lost and cut off and the threat remained at that time of losing Ethica, Euphernaia and Estya. Euphernaia, upon the uniting of the elves, dwarves, humans and half-bloods did away with kingdoms due to the fact that it was caught between Ethica and Estya and Panysor and Tracus to hopefully lend a measure of security. Now it is the seat of true governance where the parliaments and dignitaries meet to discuss how to put a stop to the forces of darkness.  
  
Once the races learned to work together, with the magic native to the elves, half-elves and some members of the human race and the ingenuity of the dwarves, they managed to advance quickly, science and magic coming together to create electricity, steam engines, automobiles etc. The dark forces made attacks but none were greatly effective and in the end, the entire conflict to most of the world seemed to be nothing more than a lover's tiff with many arguing that they had to help liberate the orcs, goblins and other races who had fallen under the spell of the dark forces.   
  
Hence why Euphernaia has a dedicated force who fight the dark forces and keep tabs on them even if it usually ends with them all playing Irate Eagles on their phones. Because this is how the world is, a blend of science and magic, biker dwarves, fashion model elves, elvish hair metal at number one, humans in charge of the navy and patrolling the boulders as best they can to help stay alert to danger. Euphernaia is referred to as the Great City, sometimes a disparaging term due to the fact that they've sacrificed the lush spaces that remain in Ethica and Estya. However, those spaces are needed to provide the crops, magically protected to stop the dark forces from destroying them and cripping those who fight against them.  
  
 **Geography:** **  
Kingdoms:**  
 **Ethica:**  
Dwarf – Granuarur  
Elf – Lithitrona  
Human - Thosar  
 **Estya:**  
Dwarf – Antovova  
Elf – Esperias  
Human – Corardium  
 **  
Former kingdoms:**  
 **Panysor:**  
Dwarf – Pelivia  
Elf – Sparopor  
Human – Olmano  
 **Tracus:**  
Dwarf – Arana  
Elf – Xanentis  
Human – Mercinia  
 **  
Capital cities:**  
 **Panysor:** Manitrus (all kingdoms in Panysor were disbanded into one absolute kingdom)  
 **Tracus:** Ibarcona (all kingdoms in Tracus were disbanded into one absolute kingdom)  
 **Ethica:**  
Granuarur - Gallarceous  
Lithitrona - Espuris  
Thosar - Ursand  
 **Estya:**  
Antovova – Arana  
Esperias - Norisova  
Corardium - Lyradova  
 **Euphernaia:** Brunderas (Euphernaia, like Panysor and Tracus, is considered to be a kingdom of Asiceos itself where all have equal footing so it has only one capital for the continent)  
  
 **Culture:**  
 **Elves**  
Male names start with vowels, females with consonants  
If a kingdom name begins with a vowel the city name must start with a consonant and vice versa  
Elves are immortal, aging extremely slowly and when they at last 'die' they become shades and stay where they are, usually being oracles that can consult those who need their aid  
All elves have a degree of magic and can learn the same magic as humans but they will never possess the same talent for it  
  
 **Dwarves**  
Male names start with consonants, females with vowels  
Kingdoms and city names must start with the same letter  
Dwarf courtship tradition: Dwarves have to bring their intended a live bear as a courtship gift  
Dwarves tend to live anywhere between five hundred and a thousand years.  
Male and female dwarves are bearded.  
When dwarves die, they literally become stone and are stored in a great underground army for the day that they are needed again to fight the dark forces if the final battle for Asiceos should ever occur  
Dwarves are great at bending rock, fire and lava to their will – they are the race that are best at it  
  
 **Humans**  
Females in a family must use the same first letter as the mother  
Human society is very much dominated by female influence – it is bad luck to sail on a ship without at least half the crew being female  
Humans tend to live around two hundred years due to scientific, magical and medical advances  
When humans die they are reclaimed by the seas to become great leviathans (whales) the figures they worship  
Magic is a great talent of humans – elemental magic as opposed to the natural magic of the elves apart from the sea where they can summon it to their will but they learned of fire magic from the dwarves and humans who have been on land for generations have some skill manipulating rock  
  
 **Half-elves**  
The half-elves tend to mix and match from their parental culture as they see fit; they live a few thousand years but do not become shades as the elves do. Instead they become glowing lights/spirits to guide people on their way but are incapable of speech or anything beyond glowing and beckoning them to follow  
Depending on the discretion of the parent, they can follow either elven or human naming conventions  
Many half-elves feel torn between their human and elven heritage but due to their long lives, they can change their path; many like to live in forests by rivers  
Half-elves must choose a path with magic – either elven or human. Many choose the opposite form of magic to the race they feel closest to allowing them to feel connected to as much of their heritage as possible  
  
 **Other races:**  
 **Sentient:** Goblins, orcs, pixies, fairies, dragons, naiads, nereids, dryads, mermaids, sirens, giants, trolls  
 **Animal:** Werewolves, the undead, demons, vampiric creatures, spiders, dinosaur lizard things  
  
 **Magic**  
 **General rules:**  
• Healers lose their abilities the more they kill but the more they save, the stronger their healing becomes  
• Humans are the only race not to be corrupted by blood magic  
• Bringing someone back from the dead is a great taboo as you are stealing them from the afterlife, the one place that the living are not meant to touch  
• Dark and light forces can, theoretically learn the same magic but the dark forces cannot use healing magic effectively and they have some schools all of their own  
• With blood magic, the blood that spatters enemies when it's used also causes damage  
• All mages have arcane mastery if they use magic  
• As for the rest, paths can be picked and chosen – such as dwarves mastering all rock and fire spells  
• Spirit magic involves drawing from the afterlife of the user - this is why half-elves are best at it because their afterlife involves them becoming spirits  
  
 **Dwarves:** masters of fire, rock, lava and strength magic  
 **Humans:** can master all fields  
 **Half-elves:** true masters of healing and spirit magic  
 **Elves:** nature magic and shapeshifting masters  
  
 **Schools of magic: Good**  
 **Arcane:  
Mastery:**  
• Bolt – a bolt of magical energy is created  
• Shield – a shield of magical energy is created  
• Focus – the wielder is stronger and knows how to wield magical energy better  
• Mastery – magical energy is mastered to be manipulated at will  
  
 **Attunement:**  
• Shield – an arcane shield is modified with spirit magic to strengthen it/help absorb attacks  
• Element mastery – all the elements are mastered and can be wielded with accuracy  
• Attunement – the mage is attuned to all magical energy around them at all times  
• Perception – time itself can be altered in brief moments in battle  
  
 **Field:**  
• Repulse – a shield is summoned to reject all attacks, magic causing attacks to bounce back  
• Vitality – fatigue and anything affected a person are lifted and though they are not healed, they are given an energy boost  
• Arcane – an arcane field surrounds allies and waves of energy are sent out to give them a constant boost  
• Negate – a field around the battle helps to cancel out any magical effects on people  
  
 **Elemental:**  
• Fire – blasts, fireballs, weapons coating, inferno  
• Ice – blasts, blizzards, weapons coating, winds  
• Lightning – blasts, storms, shocks, chains  
• Earth – armour coating, blasts, earthquakes, covers enemies in stone  
  
 **Creation:**  
• Healing   
• Enhancements  
• Glyphs  
• Summoning  
  
 **Spirit:**  
• Anti-magic  
• Telekinesis  
• Energy manipulation  
  
 **Entropy:**  
• Impairment  
  
  
 **Class:**  
 **Channeler (Arcane Warrior):**  
• Improved abilities as warriors  
• Greater strength – improved might  
• Shield projection – attacks shielded by magic  
• Spirit shield – draws on afterlife/spirits to help avoid attacks and boost magic  
  
 **Blood Mage:**  
• Blood magic – blood used to boost magic  
• Blood borrowing – allies provide blood to boost attacks  
• Cauldron – the blood of enemies boils in their veins  
• Puppet – enemies are controlled by a curse in the blood to make them a puppet  
  
 **Shapeshifter:**  
• Any animal shape can be taken  
• At a more advanced level, swarms can be used  
• At the hightest level, mythical creatures are possible  
  
 **Spirit Channeler:**  
• All allies can be healed  
• Awakening – those close to death are brought back  
• Warding – the life of a person is guarded by this ward that heals them when they are close to death  
• Panacea – constant waves of healing energy keep restoring people  
  
 **Battlemage:**  
• Drain – the spirit of enemies is drained by a field projected around the battle area, restoring the mage  
• Winter guard – a wave of ice is blasted at enemies, weakening them  
• The Wave – pain is embraced and washes over the mage, giving them strength  
• Chaos – a piece of all the elements is harnessed at once to create a storm above the battle  
  
 **Lore Wielder:**  
• Commune – animals can be summoned to fight as well as all other plants such as trees  
• Thorns – thorns and vines can be summoned and wielded to attack  
• Rejuvenate – by being close to the earth and growing things, strength can be drawn from them  
• Nature's Wrath – the earth can open up to reveal the very roots of the world to attack  
  
 **Schools of magic: Evil**  
 **Spirit:**  
• Death – bomb, syphoning of enemy and replacing it with summoned dead creatures, group bomb, reanimation  
  
 **Entropy:**  
• Hex – confusion, waking horror, sleep, nightmare  
• Weakness – paralysis, weakness, miasma that surrounds an area weakening those within, group paralysis  
• Death – magic draining, death magic, cloud of death  
  
 **Blood magic:**  
• Bloodlust – using blood magic doesn't cost the wielder as much  
• Corpse drain – the blood of the dead is used  
• Sacrifice – an ally is killed so their blood is used  
• Haemorrhage – everyone within the target of the spell has a violent wound inflicted  
  
 **Warriors**  
Warriors have a strong tradition in Asiceos and the saying is that there is no warrior stronger than a dwarven warrior. Many warriors have some degree of magic that they use to aid them in battle even if it is simply to fortify themselves, their weapons or armour. Often they use swords – or weapons like swords – and shields. Some use projectile weapons like rogues although they will wield what are really portable cannons.  
  
 **Warrior classes:**  
• Berserkers  
• Reavers  
• Disciples  
• Champions  
• Guardians  
• Channelers  
  
 **Rogues**  
Rogues in Asiceos were once considered to be sneaky and devious but have come to earn great respect over the years due to the fact that they have great dexterity and cunning. There are no guns as such in Asiceos – there are projectile weapons that can be used firing bullets with certain effects in all manner of shapes and sizes and rogues who prefer ranged combat will use them in addition to bows – crossbows have fallen out of favour as they are heavier than bows or projectile weapons and more cumbersome as well as lacking the ability to specialise much due to the delicate machinery. Rogues are often used as spies or assassins.  
  
 **Rogue classes:**  
• Assassins  
• Bards  
• Duelists  
• Rangers  
• Scouts  
• Shadows  
  
 **Religion**  
 **Dwarves:**  
Dwarves worship dragons, creatures who have skin and scales made of rock and stone and blood made of lava with fire breath. The dwarves believe the dragons created them and that this is why stones, fire and lava bend to their will. They believe that when stone met lava, it created the dragons as all rock contains the lifeblood of the world and their people. There are two dragons, mother and father, mother being the stronger of the two as she brings forth life into the world. They believe they are the grand army of the dragons and that the dragons encompass the world to keep it safe. When they die they become stone and are placed in a great hall where they will one day awaken when the final battle for Asiceos comes as the dragons will douse them in flames to rouse them.  
 **  
Elves:**  
Elves believe in a pantheon of gods, thirteen in total that all take animal forms; there are thirteen (thirteen is a lucky number to elves): the stag, the fox, the salmon, the magpie, the crow, the eagle, the hind, the rabbit, the cat, the mouse, the hound, the spider and the frog, each with their own associations. All animals and nature are revered but these animals are accorded great praise by the elves.  
  
 **Humans:**  
Humans worship great whales that they call leviathans and they believe that the afterlife is an ocean. They think that all human life will return to ocean in the end to be reborn and that blood is simply water – the phrase blood is thicker than water would mean nothing to them. They believe they become leviathans or any matter of water based life and that their blood bolsters the sea. The leviathans can be male or female depending and are usually simply referred to as the leviathans. They believe there is one leviathan above all others though, the vast one, and it carries the world on its back, sailing through a sea beyond their comprehension.  
  
 **Half-elves:**  
Half-elves have, over time, created their own religion with one deity that is genderless but possesses masculine and feminine facets. It is often referred to as the shroud and it touches everything – to them it is pure energy, pure magic. It touches and resonates in every living thing and when a half-elf dies, due to them having the energies of two races, it looses that energy into the world, transforming it for whatever purpose it will serve.  
  
 **The Dark Forces**  
Once the leader of the dark forces was a respected elven lord, lover of the elven ruler at the time of the elf-human alliance; he hated humans and hated that his lover wished to bring a human into their relationship as he wanted the humans to be under elven rule. Using his intelligence, magic and charm, he ensnared followers, mostly elven but some of the smaller races who, up until that point, had involved themselves little in the politics of elves, dwarves and humans. He ensnared them to do his bidding although they are now exposed to the culture of the other races far more and are gaining rights they never had although sadly, using magic he is able to bind them to him still and given how long he has ruled over them, they are very much under his sway.  
  
The leader of these forces is a practioner of blood and spirit magic but given his elven nature, he has very much been corrupted by blood magic and is tyrannical and paranoid – he clings to his rule, sees shadows everywhere and trusts no one. He is unable to love and sustains himself on his hatred which is why he hasn't become a shade yet. Some say that he is not elven either and that he is becoming something much more terrible. Still, the elf he loved before remains too and will only depart when their ex-lover does, believing that there is still goodness within him and that only by becoming good, can all the land be healed.  A hatred of half-elves though has caused the abhorrent practice he uses to keep control of his lands and people, for the most part, as well as using it to power what he needs to create weapons, armour, power etc - he harnesses the spirits of half-elves, gathering them up and using their energy to power his lands.  He also traps elven shades for their wisdom they are forced to give, has plundered lost dwarven halls in hopes he can awaken these dwarves to do his bidding and he regularly hunts whales to use their meat and fat and bones as well as using these hunts to upset the humans.  
  
 **Main characters**  
Raelnar  
Male  
Dwarven warrior  
Parents: Svakyri and Borer  
  
Ecael  
Male  
Elven rogue  
Parents: Flonnis and Eogwe  
Siblings: Yiraur, Iodima, Eovina and Devindor  
  
Cialine  
Female  
Human mage  
Parents: Udeva and Calu  
Siblings: Celadra and Airahelio  
  
Lyrir  
Female  
Half-elf rogue  
Parents: Anglaia and Lesova   
Siblings: Ursir  
Half-siblings (via Anglaia): Bythymnion, Theonanthano (elven)


	14. Aniconism

Once there was a world named Oiris, millions of miles away, connected to other words via the land of Nyris, home of the Gods which was connected to the land by a great waterfall. But due to the machinations of the Aspects rebelling against their elder Gods, Oiris was burned away to nothing and Nyris adrift before it came to the world known as Earth. Here the Gods of Nyris and the Aspects held equal weighting but they held little sway on this new world of Earth but they decided to change that by petitioning for Magic to start sending _real_ magic out into this world for the first time, little pockets and whispers, the likes of which Earth had never seen before. These people were spread out but the magic was sewn into them and so communities formed on the fringes of society, some forever moving so as to avoid the persecution of old. Some wanted to stay hidden, some wanted equal weighting and some wanted absolute dominion.  
  
It wasn't too long before soldiers were mobilised, people herded into camps, scientists looking for cures or something to stop the magic from being used or from spreading.  
  
But it wasn't something they could understand and when you can use magic, you can break free from your prisons (for the most part). And so the witch hunts began in a whole new era as families and communities looked for some safe place and begged for these new Gods to aid them in their struggles. As for the Gods? They're capricious at best and even the kindest of them may only be looking for a source of amusement.  
  
Aniconism picks up fifty years after the first true wave and tells the story of the first 'blood borns' - the first children who are no longer humans given an ability, moving through a world that is still attempting to adjust to the true existence of magic.  
  


The Gods  
 _Mother and Father_  
Sky ( **Trianys** ) and Weather ( **Xophrin** )  
  


_The children - the second wave of Gods_  
Earth ( **Bron** ), Fire ( **Vashri** ), Water ( **Vitri** ), Air ( **Gershra** ) and Ice ( **Stranf** )

Unions + children produced  
 **Fire & Ice**  
Vengeance   
Mischief   
Death  
Prophecy  
  
 **Earth & Water**  
Fortune  
Wisdom  
Craft  
Nature  
Wealth  
Travel  
Peace  
  
 **Earth & Air**  
Pestilence  
Sleep  
Time  
 **  
Earth & Ice**  
Disaster  
Justice  
Wealth  
 **  
Fire & Water**  
Lies  
Pride  
Jealousy & Greed  
Chaos  
  
 **Fire & Air**  
Love  
Revelry  
Light & Dark  
Healing  
  
 **Travel & Mischief**  
Larceny  
  
 **Nature & Ice**  
Spring  
Winter  
  
 **Nature & Light**  
Summer  
Autumn

The Aspects  
Love ( **Vulina** ), Fortune ( **Celian** ), Lies ( **Lir'tchri** ), Wisdom ( **Irt** ), War ( **Ullrlrln** ), Healing ( **Thrensh** ), Peace ( **Sheshash** ), Death ( **Borgh** ), Time ( **Caiustin** ), Travel ( **Dræri** ), Light ( **Tria** ), Dark ( **Xoph** ), Vengeance ( **Revvis** ), Mischief ( **Lyssin** ), Prophecy ( **Dhozhan** ), Craft ( **Makhin** ), Revelry ( **Niopeliss** ), Nature ( **Sifloris** ), Wealth ( **Cha'ah-vrash** ), Justice ( **Drenmirtis** ), Sleep ( **Nocxys** ), Jealousy ( **Azini** ), Greed ( **Iniza** ), Pride ( **Fo'bellan** ), Disaster ( **Zenvarin** ), Pestilence ( **Pekxis** ), Chaos ( **Morian** ), Larceny ( **Firtini** ) and Magic ( **Tæleasia** ) - the daughter of all.

 

The Seasons  
 **Nature &** **Ice**  
Spring ( **Surti** ) and Winter ( **Va'ar** )  
 **Nature & Light**  
Summer ( **Mimoss** ) and Autumn ( **Ro** )

 

The Blood Mages  
The blood mages are witches who gain their magic from the spilling of blood: their own, another person or even an animal. They can perform any sort of magic they are taught that isn't prophecy unless they have Seer blood in them. Adam's bloodline is the strongest of all and most likely the largest due to him travelling and bedding as many women as possible to create his bloodline, giving all his children (that he knows of) Biblical names.  
  
Dynamite (Dinah)||The Blood Sacrifice  
Adam||Dynamite's father||The Blood Mage  
Bathsheba||(Dynamite's paternal half-sister), Belial||(Dynamite's paternal half-brother), Dathan||(Dynamite's paternal half-brother), Esther||(Dynamite's paternal half-sister), Abijah||(Dynamite's paternal half-sister), Jair||(Dynamite's paternal half-brother)  
Devin and Reagan, Adam's lovers.

Little is known of Adam save that he is a vain, vain man who wants his children to look like him hence why he picks blonde women to lie with. He is a powerful blood mage but he uses Dynamite as his blood sacrifice instead of using his own blood. He has many other children that he can also draw blood from as well but he believes that Dynamite's is the strongest as she is a product of power and rage as he raped Dynamite's mother and cast a spell over her mind to make sure she kept her daughter and raised her well. Adam keeps six of his children, three sons and three daughters with him at all times for blood sacrifices when he needs them.   
  
Dynamite, the child he truly wants, gave up one of her eyes for him and he can see everything with it unless she covers it up with an eyepatch which is what Dynamite does when she wants to escape.  
  


Idina||The Blood That Travels  
Idina and Adam have crossed paths before, back in the early days when they were on the run from the government and soldiers and while she did not lie with him, they used their blood magic to bring about a child, a child purely of magic, wild and uncontrollable. Adam would dearly love to get his hands on her, Idina instead has bound her magic as much as possible and she is often given calming herbs to make her sleep.  That daughter is Nyx, begotten of blood.  Idina is prone to travelling and she has picked up a 'family' of sorts of blood mages that look up to her as mother, aunt and sister.  
  
Charlotte||Idina's wife  
Robin, Willow, Marta, Arabella, Vincent, Peter, Jasmine, Oz, Hye, Nathan, Bich, Ophelia and Veronica - the household.  
  
  
The Seers  
Seers are traditionally female; with men it is rarer and often it manifests in violence.  
Comet||The All-Seeing, Lilian||(Comet's mother) and Patrick||(Comet's father)  
Comet and her family are all Seers, her parents some of the very first Seers who organised a community. Particularly powerful, they have turned to drugs to deal with their visions as it is a hard thing to live with and as such, Comet has sort of become their parent. They set up their own little Seer community in a lazy dustbowl of a town. Comet is particularly strong although she's the first child of two known Seers so it isn't saying all that much.  
  


The First Seer||The Link to the Gods  
Jasper, Philippa, Cherish, Saffron, Katashi.

The Fates  
Blackjack||The Fallen One, Father Fate||Inevitable, Mother Fate||Spinner and Sister Fate||Alotter.  
No one is quite sure who made the Fates or when but they are an external source outside the Gods and the Aspects; Father Fate who is the one cuts the threads spun by Mother Fate with their daughter the Alotter measuring the thread of a persons life. Their son, known now as Blackjack was cast out for shirking his duties of influence, allowing the new Gods too much sway and so he has a life of confusing memories, a life where he has been dealt cruel hand after cruel hand as the thread of his life is cut and woven once more, all of his old memories clustered together until he can prove that he can perform his duties again.  
  
The Oddities  
Miasma||The Gravedirt  
Miasma is a child of Pestilence, created with a little help from Death; the children of Pestilence are all planted by him but the mothers die before the child is even born. The children grows in the body of the dead mother and then Death plcks them from the ground and turns them into a fully grown person. Miasma is able to spread virus and disease through bodily fluids, thoughts and touch, just like any child of Pestilence.  
  
Nemo||Nameless One  
No one is really sure what Nemo is beyond being rage, hate, bitterness and tears. Miasma befriends him though and they travel together at times. Nemo has magic but no one is sure what it stems from. He himself has no memories apart from waking up one day on a beach.  
  
Bao and Bai - the witches  
Agapito - witch  
Nuria - the scryer  
Afrim - the hunter  
  
The Others  
Amelia (Dynamite's mother)  
As far as Amelia knows, she's just a normal woman who unfortunately ran into the blood mage Adam who raped her and then cast a spell over her to make sure she kept her child; she loves Dynamite, he blood mage daughter by Adam, but at the same time, she can't help but wonder if that's just his doing. She ended up marrying later to a normal human man, having two more children before settling down in a Seer community where she sparked up a friendship with Comet's parents. The Seers know about her rape and outside of Dynamite, blood mages are banned from entering their community.  
Jenna (Dynamite's maternal half-sister), Brett (Dynamite's maternal half-brother) and Jeremy (Dynamite's stepfather, Amelia's husband, father of Jenna and Brett).

Dorian, Alejandro, Nguyen, Russ, Sergio - the soldiers  
Ajit - the scholar  
Masaru - Amelia's lodger  
  
Generic Information  
Light & Dark are also called Day & Night and Fortune is called Luck by humans. Craft covers anything from written or spoken works to actual craft and Nature covers things like agriculture and hunting. Sleep covers the realm of dreams and nightmares depending on who he works with as well (Peace for good dreams, Mischief, Lies or Vengeance for bad dreams). Love is all love but if she is alongside someone like War or Jealousy or Greed, Mischief or Vengeance, she is also hate. [Names written as x & y indicate twins]  
  
The world of Oiris is a world of mostly good people who live their lives as they see fit and worship their gods who live in the land of Nyris. Nyris is made of all the elements; an island in the sky with a waterfall that extends to the earth and flows to all rivers and seas and it is where people pray and hope that their prayers will be answered. The gods all live on Nyris and are as follows:  
  
Sky (Trianys) & Weather (Xophrin), the creator Goddess and God respectively who fashioned all the others from themselves; two males: Earth (Bron) and Fire (Vashri) and three females: Water (Vitri), Air (Gershra) and Ice (Stranf). These Gods and Goddesses had numerous children between them who did not symbolise but rather things that the world of Oiris would need. All the children of the gods below are as follows:  
  
Love (Vulina), Fortune (Celian), Lies (Lir'tchri), Wisdom (Irt), War (Ullrlrln), Healing (Thrensh), Peace (Sheshash), Death (Borgh), Time (Caiustin), Travel (Dræri), Light (Tria) & Dark (Xoph), Vengeance (Revvis), Mischief (Lyssin), Prophecy (Dhozhan), Craft (Makhin), Revelry (Niopeliss), Nature (Sifloris), Wealth (Cha'ah-vrash), Justice (Drenmirtis), Sleep (Nocxys), Jealousy (Azini) & Greed (Iniza), Pride (Fo'bellan), Disaster (Zenvarin), Pestilence (Pekxis), Chaos (Morian)  
  
Unions + children produced (for the five principal Gods/Goddesses)  
 **Fire & Ice**  
Vengeance   
Mischief   
Death  
Prophecy  
  
 **Earth & Water**  
Fortune  
Wisdom  
Craft  
Nature  
Wealth  
Travel  
Peace  
  
 **Earth & Air**  
Pestilence  
Sleep  
Time  
 **  
Earth & Ice**  
Disaster  
Justice  
Wealth  
 **  
Fire & Water**  
Lies  
Pride  
Jealousy & Greed  
Chaos  
  
 **Fire & Air**  
Love  
Revelry  
Light & Dark  
Healing  
  
Magic (Tæleasia) is one child who is special – she is the youngest and is related to all with each child and each of the Gods putting a little piece of themselves into a vessel as magic had a role in all things. She is commonly called the daughter of all as everyone had an equal stake in her.  
  
Light & Dark are also called Day & Night and Fortune is called Luck by humans. Craft covers anything from written or spoken works to actual craft and Nature covers things like agriculture and hunting. Sleep covers the realm of dreams and nightmares depending on who he works with as well (Peace for good dreams, Mischief, Lies or Vengeance for bad dreams). Love is all love but if she is alongside someone like War or Jealousy or Greed, Mischief or Vengeance, she is also hate. [Names written as x & y indicate twins]  
  
Look, they had a lot of free time on Nyris, there was a lot of boning.  
  
Dræri was born of the Earth, Bron, and the Water, Vitri, and is the God of Travel. His full siblings are Fortune, Wisdom, Craft, Nature, Wealth, Travel and Peace, his half siblings by the unions between Fire and Water are Lies, Pride, Jealousy & Greed and Chaos. Through Earth and Air his siblings are Pestilence, Sleep and Time and through Earth and Ice his siblings are Disaster, Justice and Wealth. He has eighteen siblings (not counting Magic). The four seasons, the children of Nature, are his nieces and nephews (Spring and Summer are nieces, Autumn and Winter are nephews); Spring (Surti) and Winter (Va'ar) are the children of Nature and Ice, Summer (Mimoss) and Autumn (Oran) are the children of Nature and Light.  
  
He is very aware of how much his dad got around. It's somewhat a joke that Dræri is bad with ladies because all the charisma was used up by his father but Dræri always argues that he has very limited options in who he sleeps with seeing as he's the one with the most siblings and his only options for partners are the children of Fire and Air or Fire and Ice; that being said, he has one child with Mischief, Larceny (Firtini).  
  
Life on Nyris was serene until Larceny wanted to explore the world of Oiris, a wish Dræri had had too. As the five principal Gods had authority, Dræri had to ask the permission of his parents as they had the most direct authority over him. His father, Bron, was opposed to the idea due to his nature but his mother Vitri agreed; he respected both his parents too much to make them argue over the issue and so he spoke to Sky and Weather (considered grandparents by all the children) and he was granted permission so long as he did not reveal who or what he was to anyone in the world below. He agreed and his brother Craft fashioned him a ship to allow him to sail up and down the waterfall. His father did not gather to see him off as he was still angry with his son but his mother assured him that his father would understand, after all, it takes the earth a long time to move. Larceny and Dræri set off to the world of Oiris where Larceny left on his own to find a ship and live as a pirate as Dræri went off to explore, gathering a crew.  
  
What Dræri didn't realise was that he'd set in motion a chain of events. The other Gods wished to come down to the world and not all of them had good intentions. They wished to make Oiris their own by any means necessary, enslaving the human population so that they would bring the principal Gods and Creators to their knees and take Nyris and all the power in the world for their own...


	15. We Could Be Heroes

In the 1960s and 70s, out of nowhere, people started to develop powers that once might have been called magic.  No one has come up with a satisfactory explanation as to the mechanics of how it came about but one thing is clear: the abilities are here to stay.  In comic books or movies they are freaks or mutants but in this world they're known as Actives (a tabloid name that stuck - a positive name too - with Deviants being the nickname for the detractors who feared and despised them), most tried their best to manage their abilities and to live normal lives but there were those who wanted to do good and those who wanted to do ill. Which is how the world came to have heroes. They started as vigilantes. Then the police asked for help, going up the legal food chain until they were on government databases, registered and given real names.  
  
Not all Actives are happy about being on registers but the newer generation, the ones taking up their mantles, have grown up in such a world and are far more willing to go with what they know. Perhaps even too willingly.  
  
There are teams all over the world at this stage, headed by a pairing of an normal human, an Active who has since retired from field work with several small teams who normally have a range of ages from eighteen to mid-thirties. At this point, there are many Actives who are also nicknamed Hybrids due to being the child of an Active and a normal human and abilities are generally passed down although there are many occasions where the child has no abilities at all in which case they are labeled Dormants. Dormants are kept on databases too and there is a huge surge in mapping the genomes of these people and in trying to find what triggered this event. Public opinion is always changing too although most feel safe due to the fact that overwhelming majority of Actives are on registers so that they can be tracked and brought to justice if they go rogue but that may not always be the case as political climates shift.  
  
The team in Australia are based in Sydney - not the capital but people are stupid and always think it’s the capital anyway and the opera house makes amazing photo ops - and have been going for years now, helping to keep crime low and to aid in natural disasters.  
  
The Sydney team was formerly headed by Jeffrey Patron, an energy manipulator who lead his team (including the current eldest members Mackenzie and Finn) against a villain who had the ability to absorb energy, a man who they never identified. He killed Jeffrey, the first truly high profile death at the hands of someone who eluded capture and his daughter, a seven year old girl, vowed that she’d be the very best and avenge her father as part of the team. She got her wish upon turning seventeen when she was considered old enough to join up alongside Mackenzie and Finn - now the team leaders.  
  
Numerous teams had been keeping track of this energy manipulator who seemed to be making it his mission to take out Actives, for what point and purpose no one could actually understand (his real motive is wanted all of his powers to be the only Active) but the Australian team had direct jurisdiction seeing as they were the first to deal with them - and they were very aware of the fact that Lucy’s own ability was a much weaker (due to her age and lack of training) version of her father’s.  
  
Training Actives or Hybrids to control their abilities follows along the lines of meditation - controlling energy, visualisation etc etc and eventually everyone finds their own rhythm although there are cases where people aren’t able to control it owing to their feelings. Hybrids have been showing a better balance though but no one has come up with any reason as to why - Lucy says she has some control because her dad taught her a little when she was very small but she also has to wear glove whereas Gregory is a born Active who only noticed his abilities gradually. There are cases of some who take years to discover what they are too and it is theorised that there are those who never become aware of what they can do.


	16. Stardust

It is the year 7568 and thousands of years ago the birthplace of humanity was abandoned when it began to crumble beneath the feet of the people who poisoned the waters, scorched the lands, destroyed and designed as they saw fit. This planet became savage and wild and in desperation they scrambled to escape to the stars and to a new life, taking all that they could as they went beyond their own solar system along the paths of winds and stars, a black silent sea with storms that destroyed until they began to lose one another and splinter off to uncharted territories, unsure if they would find life out there.   
  
Now Earth is a confused mess. Her stories, her histories, her myths and legends and languages all poured into a great pot, mixed and matched, some clinging to what they know and what they've heard until all seems a myth, all of them coming from one planet, can you imagine? A planet so vicious it's a marvel they survived. New languages have formed, new cults and factions and ancient is so relative when you cannot remember if it was Gaia or Earth or if God was man or woman. They track the stars and they say that life among them has changed their children and given them uncanny powers never found on earth while some argue that surely it has always been within them for did they not look to the heavens constantly?   
  
New planets are found, they are terraformed by the wealthy elite who control as much as they can, shaky deals for power and what counts for currency whilst the poor toil and starve at their feet and are so often consigned to the asteroids they tether together and build mining operations within for resources or space stations within orbit, a hull breach away from destruction. Others live in flotillas, the ones who cannot rest, who panic at solid earth beneath their feet and air that hasn't been recycled. It is a desperate situation – the poor are denied all rights but those they scrape for as the rich and powerful trample upon their backs.  
  
There is talk of revolution, dangerous and scandalous talk. Of some bright young woman who burns like a sun and speaks of new worlds where all will live equally, where they will not be denied by the powerful, who speaks of this as though she speaks holy scripture, vital and alive, belief bursting from each pore. She is followed by a crew of ragtag misfits, sailing from star to star, fleeing justice when they must, hunted down like dogs. Not all believe but they know their path and purpose lie there with her and they follow and survive as they will, taking on odd jobs or using their strange ship the Aether Rán to do that which they cannot do in the places they once were. They are all criminals for believing that everyone has the right to the same opportunities and a better life but will it come through their triumph or will it be their sad, tragic deaths that spark the revolt their leader says is so desperately needed?

 

 _ **☄ The captain**_  
She is Asteria Pythia, Asteria for the stars that she divines purpose from, the stars who answered when she asked for guidance and Pythia for an oracle on a world that was, the most ancient of all myths. She is the disciple to some higher call that come from the heavens themselves. She is the wild messiah, the prophet. She is the one that captains the Aether Rán and takes with her a guide and a center, her two closest friends who are guide and center, a cynic who challenges her more than all others, a wild scientist, a trickster who wheedles his way aboard and the ghost in the machine who apparently calls out her death and doom. But she has a revolution to lead against the government who sent them from the old home so long ago that they cannot agree on the name, the poor consigned to dangerous places and the rich on their beautiful terraformed paradises. To the oppressed she is a burning saviour, to the government she is a monster. To herself she is her cause, living and breathing stardust.

 

 _ **☄ The guide**_  
He is Danaus Polaris, Danaus for a butterfly that made great journeys and Polaris as a star they have left behind that once could guide them all. He navigates alongside Bayamo who tells him of the winds as he points to where they must go, which star burns brightly. He steers Asteria too when her passion ignites her so greatly that she is blinded by it and needs the touch of a human hand to turn her to her purpose once more rather than railing at the injustices about her. Danaus that they will talk to in the night, all of them creeping forward to the blinking lights of his console and the glittering studded darkness spread before them, confessing more to him than they ever will to their priest. Danaus sets them on the path, plucks it out so easily they call him magical – he's not, he's just a guide, it's his calling to do this.

 

 _ **☄ The center**_  
She is Menerva Zorya, Menerva for healing, wisdom and equally war and art and Zorya to be a guardian. She of the healing hands who makes sure Asteria sleeps, takes the bottle from Corro's numb fingers, plies Danaus with things to make him sleep. Despite this she is the vivacious one who brims with the lives she saves, laughing often, drawing everyone in with a certain warmth none of them can hope to match.  Somehow she knows what's wrong with a person simply from looking although they all agree that just being in her presence helps to lessen any illness or hurt.  She is the one with a sense of humour, teasing and relatable, very much in love with life itself, drawing everyone in.  Asteria is the light, Danaus the one that softens it so it's less than blinding and Menerva the one to cradle it carefully and offer it to those around her; she is, in her own way, radiant.

 

 _ **☄ The cynic**_  
He is Corro Momus and he swears it is what him parents named him, Corro for acids and a sharp tongue that his mother gave to him when she gave very little else and Momus for a figure of unfair criticism and blame, sharp as any chemical. He believes in nothing but prays each night to any who might listen before he drinks to forget that the whole world and universe about him are dead and damns god the next morning as he retches up bile with Menerva's hand upon his shoulder. He staggered aboard to needle at Asteria where the captain cannot escape but he is a disciple at her feet who rubs himself raw when he worships with his sharp tongue, poking holes in arguments, forcing Asteria to argue until she is red in the face and furious and she is beautiful then. So cruel to love Asteria who has no time for anything less than than all consuming passion of her cause. Sometimes in secret the prophet of doom aboard the ship will sneak to speak sensibly for those who know death are ever candid with one another.

 

 _ **☄ The trickster**_  
He is no one he says, named for not a damn thing but the way he smiles makes them all believe otherwise. If he had a name it is his to keep, not theirs to invoke as he draws them all into games of cards and dice. Is it even his true face that they see or is it something else? He'll never tell. He chafes against the government and their absolute control but he has no true interest in whatever idea may arise from the revolution Asteria stokes in the people as the Aether flies off. He revels in the chaos, in sowing discord amidst the crew and whispering in the ear of the cynic. He looks for the ghost in the machine but she knows even his end and hisses at him instead. He wants their trust, wants to twist them until he is their only truth, fascinated by what they all are. He is not an ally she can trust but she has little choice in the matter and he has a way of getting people to see the purpose of the cause. For now. He is chaos and death wanting only freedom for his own pleasures.

 

 ** _☄ The priest_**  
He is Ithiel Taberna, Ithiel for his faith is wrapped around him, sewn into each and every fibre of his being, Taberna for what is locked away in him are thousands of years of sacraments, rites and rituals, words and songs that will spill from his lips when the moment is right. His god is not the one left behind but the result of thousands of years and so many faiths instilled together. Risen from the gutter and from nothing he is humble and gentle, a good man by all accounts who seeks to bring the faith where he may and who has more need of faith than this vessel of souls? He prays in the quiet and ignores the shadow that watches him and warns of the forked tongue and hidden eyes of the trickster. The cynic talks with him with his alcohol scratch voice and damns him when sobriety rests within him. He is without anchor, the only truly holy soul and the revolution intrigues and horrifies him but he cannot leave, he was set on this path and will reach the weary and the troubled and help to wash the blood from the hands of the captain.

 

**society;**

The three social classes still exist but the divides between them are even sharper than ever due to the fact that no one is collected on one planet anymore. It's also important to note that for a long time, society went under military rule due to leaving Earth behind meaning that all normal laws were suspended to try to keep everyone alive and working together.  
  
Upper class:  
An oligarchy, the elite - they are the ones who run corporation; politicians, generals, military bodies, the heads of all major industries and services. A supreme ruling body that banned elections hundreds of years ago because they wanted to maintain control and believed that they knew best how to guide the people. Right to protest isn't banned outright but the punishments are severe - death, imprisonment, forced labour and reeducation, applicable not only to the persons involved but also their friends, family and community. The government says it does what it does to keep most citizens safe. It pretends to be loving, caring, looking after their best interests but it rules through intimidation and fear. It has enforced the current extreme divides in society for millenia now, such as showing the low test scores and learning skills of the poorest efforts as a waste of educational resources instead of putting _more_ money in to help. For the past two thousand years, circuit barcodes have been embedded from birth as a way to keep track of the population. This is near impossible to remove due to how deep it goes meaning many layers of skin must be removed along with a wide margin around it. The penalties for any tampering are severe. Every seven years they are checked by government inspectors. They are still working on ways to genetically engineer it so that people will be born with it, attached to the nervous system making it more effective and perhaps allowing them further control of the people.  
  
The main aim of the government is still to look for further life and to that end the very poorest are sent off in probes to look for other planets and systems, often one way tripes as the probes can transmit data for twenty-five years at a time. The government also has vested interest in those possessing the Illumination saying they wish to protect such special individuals. In reality, they imprison them for study and use them to plan searches for other worlds that may have alien life or important resources.  
  
Middle class:  
The middle class is a very contested group who can suddenly find themselves lifted to the upper class if they strike it big finding planets or asteroids full of valuable resources or they can suddenly find themselves among the working class if they fall upon hard times. There is absolutely no safety net whatsoever if something goes wrong (unless you're among the elite) and suddenly you will find yourself without a way to support your family. One 'solution' to this is a period of indentured servitude until the debt has been repaid although this system is often abused leaving some people trapped. Many of the middle class work in skilled jobs and all of them _must_ go into higher education. They often work for the corporations and companies owned by the oligarchy and so long as they continue to work hard, produce results and do not displease them, they can go on to have very comfortable lives.   
  
So long as the middle class work hard and keep their heads down, they're in very little danger. They amuse themselves in various sorts of games some of which involve sponsoring or adopting a child from a poor family to come live with them as a way to flaunt what they have though that child is usually treated little better than a slave. Many middle class families will sell off or give away any other family members who have the Illumination for the prestige or the money they receive.   
  
Working class:  
Much of the working class are involved in the most dangerous and poorly paid jobs such as mining and construction, many of them living on space stations or tethered asteroids. They have little in the way of education - it's provided but children have to work to help the family get by so they can't go to school often or focus on their work resulting in poor attainment and allowing the upper class to continue to enforce this cycle. They are treated as barely human at times by those better off than them, seen as disposable - the very poorest are offered to go off in probes to look for another life, promised all the riches they can imagine for them and their family if they find something worthwhile. None of them ever come back. There is a huge gang culture as well - protection money has to be paid, there are turf wars and a huge culture revolving around drink and drugs as a means of escape and coping. People will sell themselves or family members into slavery or indentured servitude to try to get by. Their homes can be a hull breach or solar storm away from destruction and no one will care about them if that happens.  
  
The outsiders:   
There are those who seek lives outside the government such as pirates, mercenaries and other gangs who go through space on their ships or the flotilla lifestyle. The flotillas vary from ship to ship and will travel endlessly to spare themselves the government restrictions - the captain's word is law and the government can't interfere with ship life unless they cause trouble so it can be common to find communities living small but comfortable lives, always on the move. On the other hand, this makes it easy for exploitation and there are always those who do that to unwary travellers who buy passage to move around or escape their own lives.  
  
naming;  
Family names no longer exist and due to leaving Earth behind as well as most literature - for a long time people adopted their ship name as their surname due to just how long people travelled the stars and that's still a practice to this day. Often people will either adopt a surname that changes often such as when two people get married, they might get rid of their last names and pick a new one that they feel suits them better.  
  
Almost anything can be considered a name at this stage with a massive resurgence in classical and mythological names, particularly those from or derived from Greek or Roman mythology or Latin names for things. There are often naming themes within families and many won't name their children until they have some idea of how they'll turn out (often referring to them by their family name or some nickname) or if they're sure they'll survive (very common with those from the lower classes.)  
  
religion;  
The major religions suffered huge upheaval upon leaving Earth with some abandoning their faith entirely and others becoming even more fervent in their beliefs. At this stage, most of the religions would be unrecognisable to anyone as they have had to change so much now that no one is centred on Earth. There has been a great loss in faith for the most part, society too busy trying to carry on to care as much as it once did and cults are common, some centreing around any of the old major religions they can best remember, others based on different principles, some based around worship of old Earth mythologies they've read on and anything in-between. There are also those who will worship people who have undergone the Illumination, treating them as prophets - they will either worship this person willingly or they kidnap and drug someone to the point that they too believe they are a prophet.  
  
One of the major religions now is simply the worship of stars, that the stars are sentient and that we must listen to them for we are in their holy space and that we are made of so much stardust. Missionaries and travelling priests and priestesses are very common, taking their faiths to any who will listen. So long as they don't cause trouble for the government, they are allowed to preach as they will, enjoying a degree of legitimacy and protection - many will take one aboard to allow them to travel to certain planets and places as a sign that they are good people, deserving of trust.  
  
sex & sexuality;  
At this stage, many people don't care about sex, gender or sexuality. Polyamory is considered to be very normal and having multiple lovers among the upper classes is a sign of status and power. Sex work isn't frowned upon - indeed, it's considered to have an important role in society and it's very celebrated. It's one way people can raise their position in life and it's a way of making important connections so much so that young people can be encouraged to go into it, at least for a time amongst the upper and middle classes as a way of securing their own future and that of their family. Some employers will refuse to hire a person if they don't have a legitimate reason (e.g. asexuals would not be stigmatised for not taking part in this) not to have worked in a brothel for a period (one year is common, usually in the year before going to university.) Clients who behave poorly are blacklisted entirely and the database is free for workers to update and access once they've completed their first experience in a brothel. In the brothel there is a buddy system where a more experienced worker will mentor them and keep an eye on their well-being and beforehand to gauge suitablility, there are counselling sessions. Some of the religions place a great focus on sexual healing and offering up their bodies as a way of seeking comfort. For some, sex is simply a way to survive and slavers often divide their 'cargo' into three categories: manual labour, potential members if they have the right temperament/can be broken or sex slaves.   
  
However, sexual violence amongst society, regardless of class, is treated as one of the most despicable crimes. Fines, imprisonment, public shaming etc - they will all be employed if a sex worker is poorly treated. Within your class, rape is treated as an abhorrent crime and even between classes, it's discouraged - it's seen as weak and cowardly to abuse your power and position in such a way and absolutely shameful behaviour.   
  
The age of consent is sixteen and sexual education is perhaps the one facet of education that everyone is equal on - they are all allowed contraceptives and access to whatever else they might need and the attitude towards sex is very positive. Education is less about procreation and more about pleasing someone - it's the one free pleasure they can have and to be a poor (or even worse, selfish) lover is something to be gossiped about mercilessly.  
  
the illumination;  
The Illumination is a very poorly understood phenomena that manifests at puberty in a small percentage of the population. The name can vary, the Illumination or Illuminating the most commonly used terms though it changes with where people come from and their background etc but all know what it is. At puberty, sparks of light will begin to glow beneath the skin to map out constellations - some that are known but most are entirely foreign and a source of great speculation. Those who undergo this can hear and understands stars and solar winds. It often takes a few years to control fully so that the glow is barely noticeable but scars, freckles, moles and imperfections of any kind will all have a soft glow emanating from them.   
  
As mentioned above, it can be incredibly dangerous to be among those who have undergone the Illumination due to the government, cults and slavers alike as well as family members who seek money and prestige. In many places though they can be viewed with outright hostility as freakish or alien.  
  
other;   
The barcode circuitry attached to all citizens also houses the communication device used in the future, a holographic interface that will extend up the the elbow and over the hand. This comm device allows for reading/communication/games etc and works as a translator given the sheer amount of languages spoken and how they've all adapted and changed over the years. By the time children are seven, they also have circuitry under the fingers of their left hand to allow them to interface with the comm device properly.


	17. The Holy Sea

The super quick notes: imagine the golden age of sail with musketeer guards but with a mix of wind and wave power instead of steam or diesel punk with nautical magical realism where so long as the people believe in it that they take it as true; in essence, that is the world of Terradeos.  
  
Okay now for the full details.  
  
In the myths there was once a great kingdom above and below the sea with the merfolk, vast in size with several islands dotted around it to form a circle. But one day, tragedy struck and the city was lost with many people drowning, the ancient civilisation lost save the beliefs of her people who made it to the islands and tried to make a life for themselves. Many were lost and it was perhaps the last time that they had full contact with their merfolk kin. In time, they built ships and learned to sail, heading off to other lands with some electing to stay and attempt to build the islands together. In time these islands came to be known as the country of Castileos and on the site of what was once their kingdom, they rebuilt the royal palace. The people of Castileos held to their own beliefs and believed that the further you live from the sea, the more you've forgotten it.  
  
Castileos thrived, living off the bounty of the sea; there are bountiful fish that they catch, areas they use for salt farming, silks made from byssal threads and master artisans who sell their wares. They have always been very much reliant on other places for foods they cannot gain from the sea and for raw materials although they were able to harness the energy of the winds and waves that buffeted their country to produce power that is found nowhere else in Terradeos as the winds and waves are only strong enough there. There were some wars in the early days when people attempted to learn secrets but the people had built strong gates and sea walls they could erect with citizens retreating to the portions of buildings built below. In time, truces were eventually brokered and the country lived in peace with the rest of the land though they relied a great deal on piracy to supplement their finances; pirates were given letters of marque to raid other countries and ships though the pirates swore never to speak of this and the royalty and government of Castileos disavowed all such knowledge or rumours of this practice.   
  
The thing is that the people of Castileos have a religious connection the sea - it was the holiest place to them, the place that they came from, mermen (called merlings) and mermaids akin to angels and so the pirates who roamed the sea did so as a holy calling, coming to call themselves Sons of the Sea. Their ships were their churches and cathedrals and they took the word of their history to those who lived on land so they would not forget their heritage entirely. Indeed, the holy buildings on Castileos are built from parts of old ships, whale bones and driftwood with the lecterns being the figureheads (commonly merfolk) as they are believed to still see all. Accompanying most ships were the Brides of the Sea, holy prostitutes. Water was thought of as a feminine element due to the womb and childbirth and so these women often went to sea with the Sons of the Sea; this is thought of as a sacred act (the embrace of the sea as embodied by the woman) because they are married to the sea and thus the source of all life and it is usually viewed as life affirming and healing. Though the Brides of the Sea are obviously allowed to have multiple partners, they are not allowed to form lasting relationships outside of friendship with one as they are already married to a higher calling and so they must either turn from the path or break off contact with that partner. Prostitution is regulated and legal in Castileos as a non-religious profession too with these individuals being known as consorts; a consort of the mercount will have relations with both men and women, a consort of the merlings will only have relations with men and a consort of the mermaidens will only have relations with women. Castileos is looked upon as having loose morals by some other countries as many take issue with prostitution in general, believing it to be dirty and the work of the desperate but the neighbouring country of Corundus, famed for its agriculture as well as the mines full of valuable ore and gems, does not. Corundus was very much a nomadic country in the early days where anyone raised together was considered to be family and the royalty there has a harem system of men and women where all children are considered to be siblings.  
  
Like most countries in Terradeos, both Castileos and Corundus have a monarchy with a government but in Castileos, the monarchy is considered to be divine and is styled as 'their grace above the waves' and all of them are believed to have the blood of merfolk in their veins. The current queen at the time of the story is young queen Leandra, the only child of her aging parents, beautiful and fair and poised to be the greatest queen Castileos has ever known. As her parents ill health began to be a cause for concern, she proved herself to be a shrewd thinker when, during a visit to Corundus, she and prince Arsenio, a son of the reigning queen of Corundus, decided to marry one another. The pair had no romantic interest at the time (and to this day, they still don't) but they were the best of friends, writing to one another often and so between them they came up with a list of reasons why they were to marry and not a single advisor could poke a hole in their arguments. By the time they were seventeen, they were wed and soon after she ascended to the throne at the passing of her father, the prince consort with her mother preferring to retire to live closer to the sea. As is custom in Castileos, the guards of the reigning monarch are all the same gender as the ruler (Arsenio has his own compliment of guards) and, as part of the ancient treaties, they come from all over Terradeos, usually the children of noble families who compete for the honour of serving as the current king or queensguard.   
  
As mentioned, the sea is important to people from Castileos, so much so that all houses are built with a glass floor so that they are able to look into the water, with the palace being built with levels that are submerged, with thick glass that allows for the observation of deep sea fish. When travelling far from home or going to land for extended periods, the people will carry a flask of sea water and upon entering a home for the first time, the visitor is offered bread and fish dipped in salt. As they revere the ocean and believe their ancestors are immortal, a dead person is returned to the sea, wrapped in a shroud made of byssus thread that is weighted down with heavy stones – any body of water will do as they believe that they will make it to the right place and whereas many others are horrified that the dead are going to be eaten by fish, the people of Castileos are happy; they will eat those fish and so in a way, it's a circle of life deal to them. This is really the only part of the religion of Castileos – there are mermaids and merlings to pray to and mother ocean to thank with things like seahorses being seen as symbols of fertility but there are no named figures as such for them to pray to. This doesn't stop people from referring to the Sons of the Sea as pirate preachers, a nickname they all laugh about when really, they just like reminding people that they should come sailing and that their blood is water.  
  
Given that Castileos is really a series of islands connected by bridges, there are often areas were people are likely to fall in but there is a population of large squids that patrol the waters and rescue anyone who falls or is in danger of falling. Part of each catch is given to these squid and squid that do not help are chased away – down at the docks in particular, the squid will wait and even help to lift and support the workers and children are often found bouncing up and down on them. The squid also volunteer much of the ink that is either used for cooking or for writing. The connection they have to sea life is thought to stem from them coming from the sea and though they do not claim to understand or to have some sort of mastery over them, there's an unspoken agreement. They never take more than is needed and sailors are always careful with their nets to make sure they don't ensnare seals, sharks, dolphins or young whales and they're happy to share portions of their catch with them and seabirds. Whales are only ever hunted in times of great strife when they are running low on food, not because they are considered to be holy but because the people believe they possess the same level of intelligence and empathy as humans and that the need must be very great indeed. Sailors commonly follow whales to find good feeding grounds to fish in and Sons of the Sea have been known to save whales that others are trying to hunt, throwing the bodies into the sea for the whales or hungry sharks that appear.   
  
Castileos supports a thriving artisan den – there are lots of nets and shells and other treasures washed up (either actual treasures as recognised by most folk or things like coral fragments and smoothed glass) that they weave into beautiful things. All the streets are paved with shells and larger shells like those of a clam are even used as purses by women.   
  
Though magic as most would see it does not exist, there is a belief in being able to divine the future in Castileos, commonly done by older women who weave kelps and seaweeds into their hair and wear veils made of old nets. They use fish bones, crab claws and legs, seawater in special bowls where they mix that with sand and read the shapes left behind or they can even use shells, read the rings and lines and ridges or seeing things in the shining insides. Mocked by most other countries, the people believe greatly and will consult these women before making major decisions such as before heading to sea or marriage. Pregnant women frequent them often to learn of the future their child will have and great stock is put in their wisdom.


	18. Pythonissas

In the beginning there were the angels, organised into their hierarchy, some with many wings and many eyes and many faces, corporeal and yet not at the same time - the bodies came later, when humanity wept and screamed at the sight and sound of them. But that was later. Much later.  
  
Because God made the angels and there were the archangels above all the rest, the terrifying but beautiful shining figures: Michael (Who is like unto God?), Gabriel (Man of God), Raphael (God's healing), Uriel (Light of God), Selaphiel (Intercessor of God), Jegudiel (Glorifier of God), Barachiel (Blessing of God) and Lucifer. Lucifer the morning star, the brightest and most beautiful angel every created. A son who loved his father.  
  
Until father made the humans. Lucifer refused to bow to Adam, twisted Adam's first with Lilith into the first demon and then had Lilith help to seduce Eve then Adam into eating the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. Now Lilith had refused to accept Adam's dominion over her and had left the garden to be dragged back by three angels and if there was one he really liked then maybe it was her. She refused to bow after all. Not equals but something worth twisting and from Lilith sprang many more demons. Lucifer equated power and perfection; most loved, the brightest, the most worthy, who was he to bow to these things that could be twisted so easily? How were they worthy of his love? Of being the heirs to Earth? War came as Lucifer rebelled, as angels fell either to his side or in battle until he was ultimately cast out by Michael. Ever since then Lucifer has painted himself as a hero and the wronged one, a lie he's been telling himself for time beyond counting - look at him, the one who loved his father, who loved God so much that he refused to bow to any other and he thought he was loved because of his brightness and beauty. After all he was loved best because he was the best, right? So why would God love these flawed creatures that could turn on each other, that disobeyed, that had wicked awful thoughts and vices and could be made into a mockery of what they once were?  
  
And then there was the whole matter of Cain and Abel, the first born and the first to die. The curse of Adam and Eve was to live forever and to watch Seth then all their other sons and daughters age and die as the demons began to grow in number, reaching out to twist and hurt.  
  
So that's where the demons come from. First made by Lucifer through creating Lilith and then by Lilith herself, more and more demons followed. Lucifer gained a crown of his own making, fire and ice in a place of darkness and horror, the brightest light because he was the only light, surrounded by demons that flinched and prostrated themselves before him. Lucifer hates his demons though, make no mistake - he hates them about as much as he hates humans.  
  
Now those angels who sided with Lucifer were not taken down to his new domain with him - they were cast down to Earth, unable to return to heaven and that was when they mated with the daughters of men. From these unions came the nephilim, giants at first with monstrous power who were hunted down by the angels. Yet they lived on and some went on to have children with the sons or daughters of men, with other fallen angels or demons. Now not every angel that left heaven fell in battle or in siding with Lucifer. To see a son fighting his father, to see brother against brother? It was traumatic. Some of them disappeared and wore the bodies of men as did the fallen but they could not return to a divided house so they remained and watched over humanity as it grew and began to have families of their own. With this mix of divine and infernal power, so came something rich and strange.  
  
In time this came to be known as magic by those who had it, feared and hated and loved in equal measure and all things in between. Astral projection, dream walking, telepathy and telekinesis, flight and teleportation, weather and elemental manipulation, mind manipulation, shape shifting, invisibility, healing, necromancy, possession, enhanced strength and senses and perhaps even time travel. Those born of nephilim descent had strength fair above all others, a remnant of when they had been much larger than before. It's something of a lottery to know what you'll be born with and the demons are far below that of that of angels or nephilim given that they are twisted remains of what was once human. Through torture where time ceases to exist, demons are born into life as pain, their souls flayed over and over until they forget what they once were, ready to spread more of the same. The demons hunt and prey on whatever they can and through the dreams of men and those with magic they are able to bring monsters from nightmares and stories to life, creatures they can control to help them in their work. In order to combat this, some angels reached out to sons and daughters of men to teach them holy rites and to bless them with strength, protection and courage in order to combat the demons and the witches that they believed to be in league with the darkness.  
  
A gross oversimplification; those with magic made their own rules as they saw fit. Organised into families (either by blood or by bond) and then into houses and finally into cabals, the witches decided that they would use what they had been as it suited them. Cabals tended to rule a territory that they divided amongst the houses with three families to a house - often young witches were expected to spend time within another house as a symbol of cooperation. With hunters and others after them they needed to be careful and maintain good relations with one another. As time moved on, the witches learned to hide themselves and everyone became far sneakier in how to do their work. The witches thrived - technology and science? Easy for them to whisper a few words here and there, to concentrate hard enough and get the job done. The hunters were the ones living in the past. Cabals, houses and families all still existed although over the centuries they changed. They began to trace their histories and reached out to whoever they could, whether it be the fallen angels who hid in churches and wept as they listened to the hymns but never dared to sing, to the nephilim who would so often turn and walk away or to the demons who were always so happy to help. Deals were struck, bloodlines were preserved and in time they took the power from long ago to shape it into something different under the tutelage of whoever might listen to them. Usually the demons listened, always willing to creep into the world and gain power and in time some of them would come to marry into these bloodlines to gain further power. However it came to be, these families soon realised that if they married into those without magic, the bloodline and power would fail very quickly so they came up with a system that has served them well: they marry within their families, bringing in demons, nephilim or fallen angels if they think the power is failing.  
  
The thing about angels, nephilim, demons and fallen angels? They only die when they're killed and aging is simply for the sake of appearances if they choose to stay in one place, withering their body, dissipating then manifesting anew. An aspect of those with so much power being unable to die is that their power created a world for all those in possession of magic – a dream world, one where everyone supposedly goes when they sleep that only some can reach out and perceive for what it is. Those with magic can be taught to do this, to wander through minds at will, to share information and knowledge and to meet with angels, demons and whatever else there is in the world. It can allow them to control people but also allows for them to be controlled by something far more powerful than them. Those with true talent to shape the dreaming world and the dreams (and minds) of others are often referred to as weavers, highly sought after by many for some believe they are the leaders of the armies when the war comes again.  
  
Of course with magical bloodlines come traditions.  
  
Some married only within magical bloodlines, some liked to abduct young men or women to marry into their lines. For weavers though, their powers were rare, diminishing quickly with too much outsider blood. Weaving magic was found to be stronger in women than in men - the weakest woman is stronger than the strongest man and in time those possessing magic began to found dynasties of power and wealth, intermarrying between one another to try their best to secure bloodlines by marrying their sons and daughters where they could. Marrying out to those without magic saw the great dilution in many cases and could even produce no magical children at all. None wanted to squander their great gift. Still, not all were happy with such marriages and often, once at least one daughter had been produced, many men met tragic ends - after all, they were not truly the ones to carry the gift, women being always stronger than men but to have a bloodline, you needed a man.  
  
Until one day a few hundred years ago, a young woman was distraught at hearing she would need to marry, to move away with his family and leave her own family and, perhaps more importantly, her female lover behind. She refused loudly to the point her mother realised she would need to use her own magic to force the issue; so the daughter reached out to a demon. This demon, seeing a chance to gain great influence and power taught her a fertility spell that would allow her to have a child with another woman. The price? The man she was meant to marry and his family. The young witch was happy to oblige and offered them up at the engagement dinner, turning it into a slaughter, her own family spared and witness to the demon and her followers appearing to devour those the witch had offered to them. Before her family, the demon called for the witch's lover and performed the spell.  
  
Nine months later not only was a daughter born (the first of many) but a new tradition too. Bloodlines can unite with magic only if they so choose though some will still marry men out of choice or perhaps even love but if they wish to guarantee a magical bloodline, they can broker such a thing between the women. Sacrifices are made to the demons (and rumours say some may mate - magically or in the flesh - with demons to create even more powerful offspring) to ensure they can keep doing this. Modern society has only made this easier as there are fewer reasons to have to hide although most are capable of doing so with their magic too. The spell is not a guarantee of a daughter but the sons born of such unions are strong enough that they are loved and treated well as opposed to having few rights of their own amongst the families where weaving is strong and to those who might only gain a weaver through a boy, they are treasured.  
  
Witches have not been thought to exist for a long time thanks to the efforts of hunters. All those witch trials? Hunters. Hunters informed by angelic assistance to help them fight the scourge of the demons until at last their influence waned, the witches closing ranks, the world moving on. Now they are careful to hide as best they can, through glamours and other guises, using their magic to influence what they can and to keep them safe. There is demand of magic though - careful whispers in the right ears and you're told where to go and who to meet. Stockbrokers do love their luck charms after all. The young men of families often work as fencers, slipping in where they can, listening to the whispers and demons, nephilim and fallen angels who have contracts with the family benefit from splitting the deal with them. The hunters are returning though, amassing in strength but now the witches are ready, armed with combat prowess as well as magic - the hunters are only mortal men and women made strong through angelic blessing (or that's what they claim) plagued by visions and often dying from prolonged contact with something so inhuman. The witches play the long game, same as the things that made them. If the hunters want a war, then it's war they will have but it'll be waged on the witches terms.


End file.
